Fight or Flight
by FineAndDandy90
Summary: Gotham is a flawed city. Selina Kyle and Bruce Wayne are flawed individuals. A chance meeting changes both of them for better or worse as they learn that a one-dimensional approach to life is going to lead down a dark path that they are destined to share (AU).
1. Thief

Selina Kyle's dress was tight and revealing allowing her to look older than seventeen, but she'd still have to make sure that she didn't let Pam pick out another of her outfits again. Especially for a job.

"You'll look sexy, Selina." Pam had said trying to convince her from just breaking in like she used to when she was a child. "Those guys'll be lining up to take you in." She wasn't wrong, the old guy was getting handsy in the car asking her how much she charged for the night. She hated having to do this and grimaced at the thought of him touching her.

She had finally managed to lose sight of her more than willing chauffeur at the far corner of the ballroom, away from the dancing couples. Being alone gave her the chance to breathe and it felt good. Nobody would notice her leaving, she thought, as she took one last look behind her before slipping out into the east corridor of the Kane home. Selina laughed to herself at the idea of it being a home. Modern castle seemed like a more appropriate term.

'Easier to break into though.' She thought as she remembered stealing the umbrella from the Penguin's actual ice castle when she was fourteen.

Silently working her way through the marble-tiled halls, avoiding anybody in her path, Selina finally reached the master bedroom. This really was the embarrassment of riches. The stone plinths that they had vases balanced on in this place would probably worth enough to feed all the kids on the streets in the cauldron for months.

Putting the bitterness aside, Selina tried the handle for the bedroom door preparing to have to pick the lock and surprisingly it opened. The bedroom was huge. Why would somebody need so much room to sleep? It didn't take Selina long to spot the jewellery box on the dresser. "Heh... Blue bloods are asking for it to be taken." Selina muttered to herself as she walked towards it and opened it.

As she focused the necklace she'd been tasked to find Selina hadn't noticed that she'd been watched. Pam's dress had attracted attention that Selina didn't need, and that attention had followed her through the halls and into the room.

"What are you doing?" A male voice asked making Selina jump as she put the necklace in her purse causing her to knock the box clattering to the floor.

"Shit!" She mumbled spinning around on her heels. Stood in the doorway was Bruce Wayne and Selina swallowed nervously. Being caught by an entitled billionaire was not in the job description, she had to think fast.

"I was just collecting something for Mrs Kane, you startled me." Selina said sweetly, placing her hand over her heart.

"You don't look like you're one of the help." Bruce stated, slowly stepping towards her. Selina slowed her breathing, she had to remain calm to find an exit and she couldn't risk fighting him. She could take him, but the commotion would get her caught and as her eyes wandered the room looking for an exit, Selina noticed the open window behind Wayne. They were on the first floor; the fall wouldn't be too bad.

"You're quick billionaire, I'll see you around." She smirked before darting past Bruce, narrowly avoiding his grasp. Selina ran towards the window with Wayne on her heels regretting her early cockiness, believing this to be an easy job. She jumped as she got towards her target, balling herself up in the air so she'd fit through the gap knowing that if she messed it up she'd be caught. She felt her hair brush along the top of the window and the wind whistling past her ears, millimetres away from being caught. Selina dropped her legs and let out a gasp as she got ready for the impact. Bruce watched in awe as she gracefully bent her knees into a front roll as she hit the ground and ran into the darkness.

As she approached the side gate Selina felt her heart pounding against her rib cage, it had been years since anybody had even come close to catching her and the rush brought a smile to her face. She was surprised the alarm hadn't been sounded yet, it had been at least five minutes since she had left Wayne which was more than enough time to tell someone and have the cops on their way here but nothing, she guessed that mouse was doing her job.

Selina slowed as she got to the gate opening her purse and with a grin, she showed off her prize. The camera slowly turned towards her and the gate buzzed opened as Mouse controlled the system from her store near Gotham U. Selina walked through into the trees surrounding the Kane estate back towards the city to deliver the necklace.

It wasn't until early morning that Selina managed to reach Gwen (Buzz) Altamont's Bar. After dropping down from the fire escape behind the bar and using the cover of darkness as well as a now smashed glass bottle she managed to sneak past the bouncer. On the stage, there was a girl, not much older than Selina singing to what seemed like nobody until Selina saw an overly large, broadsheet newspaper shrouding a woman sat leaning against the wall in a booth by the stage.

"Hey Lo'! How's it going?" Selina called as she approached the older woman, who looking up through her thick glasses and curled grey hair, scowled as she lowered the newspaper slightly.

Lola was Gwen's mother and had worked for Falcone since he first started out. "In the office." Lola's hoarse voice told her, ignoring the question she'd just been asked, before concealing herself with the paper again and continuing to ignore Selina's presence. Selina had always wondered why she hated her but never had to ask because she just ignored her, even Buzz didn't know why.

The door labelled office was already open, so Selina walked in to find Buzz sat behind her desk like she was every time they met wearing a smile and some god-awful knitwear. She was nicknamed buzz because when she was a teenager and her Mom was in a relationship with Falcone she was mistakenly kidnapped because they thought she was his daughter Sofia. She's told several versions of what happened to her but never the truth. The only thing people know is that she ended up with a permanent ringing in her ears and a penchant for killing people.

"Cat!" She exclaimed raising her arms up on either side of her to welcome her master thief.

"I can always rely on you, but I still wish for you to invest in a car." She continued to praise.

"B, you know that that's just a quicker way to get caught. Cars can be tracked easier than people, especially in this city." Selina told her once again, she could drive, and she could hotwire a car. As far as she was concerned that is all she needed to do with the things, her feet and the rooftops were more reliable.

"I got it." Selina stated taking the necklace from her purse and offering it to her.

"Could you put it on me, baby?" She asked lightly tracing her manicured nails along her neck and down to her chest with her chin slightly raised. "Certainly!" Selina chirped feeling bile rise to the back of her throat.

She walked around the back of the desk behind Grace, leaving the purse on it, and unclipped the necklace.

"You've become quite the beautiful young woman Selina." Grace said in a matter a fact tone as she lifted the long dreadlocks from the left side of her neck, not needing to do so on the right side because it was a short half Afro.

"Thanks..."

"You should start using it to your advantage." Selina mentally sighed as she clipped the necklace together.

"You know I'm not doing that." Selina told her cautiously, afraid she might snap.

"I know, I just like to check every so often. I could use a strong girl like you to keep the others in check. Betty's almost thirty. She's getting past her prime." She said as if it were a normal conversation.

"Thank you for this." Grace continued, gesturing to her neck with both hands as Selina picked up her purse again. "I knew I just had to have it when I saw how hideous it looked on that Kane woman."

"That's cool, no biggy." She smiled.

"I'll make sure you get Benny's bonus along with the agreed price for getting past him again."

Selina felt a smile grow on her lips as she left the room. The woman may be crazy, but she was a nice crazy when she wanted to be. Waving goodbye to Lola, who still ignored her, Selina walked out of the front entrance rather than the back alleyway she came in through.

She used the rooftops rather than the streets to travel around the city, jumping over gaps between buildings with ease. Within minutes, she was scaling the Channel Nine News building, to watch the sunrise as she did after most jobs. By the time Selina got back to her apartment, the streets were bursting with life as people tried to beat the morning rush hour to get to work.

She'd climbed in the window from the fire escape like she usually did so she wouldn't forget to put the padlock back on the door and kicked her flats off as her feet hit the grainy grey carpet that covered all the floors except the bathroom and corner, separated by a counter, that was supposedly a kitchen. Collapsing on the worn couch in the middle of the room Selina turned on the TV before dropping the remote on the ground. She let her eyes close and fell asleep to the sound of the aspiring anchor, Vicki Vale, talking about corruption in the Mayor's office.


	2. Failure

Bruce watched as the girl disappear into the darkness and was stunned by not only her skill but how he didn't actually try to stop her. After all of his training with Alfred leading up to this moment and he managed to screw it up. _Didn't do anything, just like with your parents_ Bruce thought as he mentally scolded himself. As he blinked he saw flashes on their bodies as they lay on the street like trash and the green eyes watching from the fire escape. Just like him, the girl with the wild hair was crippled in fear.

The police never found her though, they thought she was imaginary, but he knew she was real. After all the good his parents had done, in the end, it was all for nothing. Falcone and Maroni taking over the Arkham project, the corruption in Wayne Enterprises and a useless son. Bruce pushed the thoughts aside and left the bedroom.

Subconscious revenge was a reason that crossed Bruce's mind as he headed back to the ballroom. After all, his aunt tried to defy his parents wish for Alfred to raise him before their funeral and then she tried to steal his company from underneath him when she couldn't get custody of him, using the excuse that she wanted to ensure that it was ready for him when he became of age after she lost her case against him. It didn't matter, he was a child, not stupid. It was him that found the loop hole, after all, not his team of lawyers.

He passed maids and other workers, knowing that he should tell somebody what he had seen but just found himself walking and unable to stop, he knew that it wasn't something as petty as revenge that was preventing him from coming forward. Justice was justice, no matter who it was for.

"Bruce!" A female voice gushed just as the ballroom came into sight. Aunt Gabriella.

"Oh, how I've missed you!" She continued in an enthusing manner as she pulled an unwilling Bruce into a hug. Feeling more relaxed as she broke away, he noticed that she wasn't nearly as tall as him even with heels on.

"Look at you!" She said, looking him up and down. "You're growing into a fine young man."

"Good evening Aunt Gabriella" Bruce began, putting on his billionaire smile and attitude on like a mask.

"Bruce, Good Lord. How many times am I going to have to tell you, call me Gabi, we're family!" She corrected, tapping him on the shoulder just like she did when his father called her by her full name.

"I apologize, Gabi, I guess my parent's lessons on the importance of chivalry and decorum are still paying off." He smiled, hiding the guilt of keeping the robbery that had happened only moments ago from her, even after what she tried to do to him.

"Oh, Bruce you remind so much of your father!" She laughed. "He was just as charming."

"Thank you, Alfred is always telling me how much I'm like him when they first met." Bruce smiled, trying to think of a way to get rid of her.

"Ah… Yes. How is the butler?" She asked as if even speaking his name would make her vomit. When she tried to take Bruce away Alfred politely convinced her to back down. Bruce never found out what he said but he wasn't allowed in her house after that. That's the only reason that he didn't come this evening.

"He is doing well, thank you for asking."

"I am so sorry that I haven't been there for you since your parents passing but with Elizabeth going missing..." She said as the discussion took a morbid turn, just like any other time his parents came up in conversation. Even five years later, all anyone cared about was their death, not all of the good the accomplished in their lives.

"No, I completely understand. She was a bright young woman and I was sorry to hear about what happened. I miss her dearly, she was a good friend." Bruce said sincerely while knowing that it wasn't actually true. He'd become rather good at lying.

"I remember how close you and the girls were growing up. It seems like only yesterday that you three..." She said as began to tear up. "Oh, I'm sorry Bruce. It's just you forget how much you miss them until you're reminded of them and then the emotions come flooding back all at once. You understand." She said in a matter a fact way. He didn't. Bruce missed his parents every day, no reminder made a difference. I was just like an empty void inside of him that nothing could fill. Bruce Wayne died that day along with his parents. The only thing that survived was his name.

"Of course." He lied. "That's why you are going to Belgium, to be closer to your husband?" Bruce asked, already knowing that it was.

"Yes, I just can't bear the thought of leaving Katherine here alone. Especially with the circus folk." She admitted as a passing waiter gave her a look that can only be described as disgust.

"I've been trying to work up the courage to talk to you all evening, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't shown up." Gabi began. He almost didn't but Alfred insisted that people would talk if he didn't.

"If it were for anyone else, I wouldn't have." Bruce said trying to ease the tension that had suddenly come across in her words.

"That really means a lot, Bruce, I know you're a busy young man. Jetting off all over the world for business at your age is mind boggling." She Paused.

"I just wanted to ask you to keep an eye on Katherine for me while I'm away. I know it's not a request you may have expected but I trust you more than anybody else here and I know that she'd love to see you again." Bruce cut her off as she began to ramble, and his mind began to wonder at the thought of trust, and he thought about how easy it would be to tell her about the girl but something in him stop the words coming out of his mouth.

"Of course, I wouldn't mind, and I'd love to see Katherine again." He smiled.

"Thank you so much, Bruce. You do not understand how much this means to me." She said pulling him into another unwilling hug.

"I was going to head home early, so it is lucky you found me when you did." Bruce said smiling as he found his way out.

"Well then, goodnight Bruce. I hope to see you when I get back." Gabi beamed, her smile seeming impossibly wider.

"I do too and tell the Colonel that I am looking forward to seeing him the next time he is in Gotham." Bruce told her before managing to walk away, his smile dropping the second he lost sight of Gabi. He worked his way through the ballroom and headed towards the front of the house before he called Alfred and asked him to bring the car around so that he could just get home, all the while still thinking about the girl in the room and why he'd let her escape.

* * *

Selina began to stir in her slumber as she felt something nudging her cheek, assuming it was one of her cats she tried to swat it away in a sluggish manner which only resulted in her hitting herself in the face. Somebody began to laugh, and it woke Selina up completely. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see a green coat and a woman towering over her, as her heart began to beat faster Selina took her chance to strike and kick her leg up to trip the intruder. They fell on their back and Selina slid off of the couch gracefully and pinned her arms above her head as she sat on the woman's stomach. "Ouch!" As the subdued person groaned Selina got to see their face and sighed, releasing their arms. "Pam."

"How many times have I gotta tell you not to sneak up on me?" Selina complained as she stood up, still recovering from the flood of adrenaline.

"I'm gonna have my knife on me one of these days and you're not just gonna get knocked over." She said, offering Pam, who was still laying on the ground with a, what Selina was going to assume was, at least a twenty-four-hour scowl on her, a hand up which she begrudgingly took. Once she was back on her feet Pam slapped Selina shoulder hard.

"Does that hurt? Huh, what about this? Or this?" She said playfully as she continued to hit Selina.

"Alright! Alright! I'm sorry, you win." Selina said putting her hands up in defeat, still completely exhausted. Looking up at the clock shaped like a cat, that Pam had gotten her as a housewarming gift, Selina noticed it was only nine and realized she could have only been asleep for a couple of hours. With a groan, she collapsed back onto the couch covering her eyes with her arm to block out the sun.

"You better have coffee and a good reason for being here." Selina told her.

"Well I was going to ask you how last night went but I guess you don't wanna talk to your best friend." Pam said pouting before sitting on Selina's legs that were draped across the couch.

"Ouch!" Selina cried out, deliberately over exaggerating before pulling her legs out from underneath Pam and sitting on them herself before pulling the hem of the dress she was still wearing slightly further down her thigh as she noticed how cold it was.

"Jeeze, you move fast." She said noticing the two cups of coffee Pam held taking one for herself.

"No, I just know you." She stated before bursting out laughing.

"What?" Selina asked sipping the drink.

"Your hair, how does it do that? I straightened it myself yesterday." Pam asked noticing Selina's hair had reverted completely back to it's the messy curled look that shortened it by at least six inches. Selina just shrugged and enjoyed the coffee.

"Did you find the magic gene with Bloom last night?" Selina chuckled.

"Ha! Ha!" Pam laughed along sarcastically.

"What about you? Anything interesting happen at the party?" Pam asked with a smirk that told Selina she knew something that she didn't.

"You obviously already know." She said.

"No, that's why I'm asking you, dummy. You screw any dumb rich boys?"

Selina scrunched her face up in disgust.

"If you count being screwed over by Bruce Wayne. That asshole caught me in the room before I could get anything for myself."

"Holy shit Selina!" Pam laughed.

"Why'd he follow me to that goddamn room?" Selina asked herself aloud.

"Who cares?" Pam answered putting an end to Selina's short-lived curiosity. "Get dressed now, we've got plans."

"Great." Selina muttered sarcastically.


	3. Cat and Mouse

"So where exactly are we going?" Selina asked Pam as they reached the bottom of the fire escape and began to walk down the alleyway behind the apartment building that was empty except for a few dumpsters.

"Mouse wants to see you and I need to pick up some stuff from The Shamrock. Then I figure we could have a girly afternoon." Pam suggested linking arms with Selina who had burst out laughing at the idea of her and 'girly' being used in the same sentence by the person that is supposed to know her best in the world.

"Hold on, did you say The Shamrock?" Selina asked, dropping the laugh. Pam nodded and Selina knew that her answer wasn't the one she was looking for, and Pam seemed to look sad as she turned away.

"I knew I should have gone before I came to get you." She mumbled under her breath.

"Pam!" Selina scolded and to somebody watching it would have looked quite comical to see the much smaller girl tell off her friend who now had her arms folded and was turned away from her like a child. "I swear if this for Bloom again..." She asked throwing her hand up in defeat.

"It's not I promise." Pam said, keeping her back to Selina.

"Turn around..." She demanded but Pam ignored her, sticking her bottom lip out, pouting like a child. "Don't bullshit me, Pam."

"It not like I can't handle myself."

"What with your perfume you mean?"

"Yeah..." Selina cut her off. "The perfume that he gives you the plants to make?" Pam stood and looked puzzled for a second before finally getting the point.

"I just don't want you to end up like dead for that creepy doctor, okay." Selina said dropping her head.

"It'd be worth it Selina, he's so close to a breakthrough. We just need..." Pam told her.

"Are you kidding me? I've seen what Sean does to people who don't pay back, I know that you can't so I assume that your friend does." Selina snapped and Pam's face dropped. "You remember Dex? What Sean did to him, and he was just a kid back then, you think he'd hesitate to kill you? Beside's, if this thing is so important, why doesn't he get it?"

"Well if your do gooder boyfriend didn't cut the budget we would need anything from here." Pam spat, instantly regretting her words. "Selina..."

"You go right ahead, get yourself killed, see if I care." Selina said walking away towards the street that was teeming with activity as Pam called after her.

Pam never listened and never learned. Not unless it was the hard way and that is how it was going to be with Sean and Bloom. She had seen his version of the hard way when she tried to steal from him with a boy she used to run with, so when she heard Pam mention going to him for the first time she didn't talk to her for a week. She'd told her about him and warned her about what he could do but she still kept going back.

Pam put herself in danger and Selina let herself care. She hated it. The vulnerability that came with relationships was a cost she couldn't afford but Pam had spent years when they were kids working her way into Selina's life and breaking through the walls Selina had built after her mother abandoned her at the Saint Swithin Orphanage until she was finally considered a friend.

Selina had swiped a wallet as she walked through the crowds of people on their way to work on the outskirts of the narrows and emptied it of cash, dumping it as she walked. She took an uptown cab to Mouse's security shop in South Point using the money she had stolen and noticed how different things look as you headed north. She'd not taken the streets in a while and had almost forgotten how different things looked here compared to the narrows.

Mouse had come a long way fifteen years but her standards hadn't changed from that of somebody from the narrows Selina noted as she walked into the store the was normally messy but organize but now just a mess. The security equipment littered the floor and looked out of place with the shelves still completely stocked.

"Mouse?" She called as she climbed onto the counter and sat down.

"Gimme a second sugar." She shouted from out back so Selina waited and sure enough she walked out carrying more equipment in her arms that towered over her head.

"Do you need some help with something?" She asked Mouse, confused why she was just dumping her gear out.

"Nope, just clearing out." She said still concealed by the mountain in her arms.

Mouse walked up the centre of the two shelves that ran down the middle of her small store up to the pile that had begun to accumulate by the door. Selina winced as Mouse let thousands of dollars worth of equipment clatter and smash on the ground before she turned to look at her.

"Well, well, well." She chuckled as she slowly stepped towards Selina. Her bald head leaned back allowing the black pet sunglasses that she wore on her forehead to reflect the light that seeped in through the front windows and her small frame moved as she laughed. "Getting sloppy?"

"Ha! Ha!" Selina said before changing the topic. "What are you doing?" She asked gesturing to the stuff she had obviously been taking from her back, back office, behind the bookshelf, and just dumping out in the open.

"Oh, that?" Mouse adjusted her actual glasses.

"I was hacked, it all needs dumping. Hill's coming to get it." She admitted and it was Selina's turn to laugh.

"Getting sloppy?" She mocked.

Mouse scowled at her before heading back towards the office, beckoning her to follow.

"So why did you want to see me, M? It wasn't to gloat obviously." Selina asked as she sat in the leather 'client' chair and went to put her feet up on the desk while Mouse shut the bookshelf door.

"Don't even think about it." She said before Selina's feet could touch the wood. Mouse was what Selina imagined a grandmother would be like. Well, a grandmother that could basically hack anything and committed some form of computer crime every other day, but a grandmother all the same.

"I should kick your ass for what you said out there, or keep you here till Hill gets here." She said and Selina knew she was serious. For such a small woman, she could do a lot of damage. "I hear he's still holding a grudge for what you and your friend did to him all those years ago."

Selina had to stifle a chuckle as she thought about the time her and another kid from the narrows, Dexter, got hold of a gun for the first time and Hill tried to take it. Selina ended up shooting him in the butt by accident and as entertaining as she finds thinking about it, she hasn't touched a gun since then.

"Sorry, M." She mumbled.

"Anyway," Mouse began. "I need you to know you can't contact me again." She said calmly as if she were asking how many sugars Selina took.

"What? why?" Selina asked, dumbfound.

"Falcone gave me to Maroni for Amusement Mile. He's got somethin' planned, somethin' big. You need to get you and you're friends out while you can." She continued.

"But... What about you? And..." Selina tried to argue leaning forward in her seat, she'd become quite fond of Mouse over the years.

"NO!" She boomed. "Maroni wants an excuse to start a war. I disappear and then that lights his fuse. I'm not gonna have that blood on my hands." She told the younger girl who could now understand.

Neither of them had taken a life before but Selina knew how it felt to be responsible for more than one death. Dexter. Bridget. The Waynes.

"Okay." She said slowly as she stood up. "I'll get out when I can." Selina told her. Mouse knew how this was gonna go down and being part of either family was going to result in death for Selina, she was too good at her job.

Selina wasn't going to drag out a goodbye so she was pushing the door open before Mouse stopped her.

"Where the hell do you think you're goin'?"

"Uh, away. You just told me to..."

"I've got something for you, sit your butt back down." Mouse demanded and Selina did as she was told. The older woman slid a small envelope across the table and Selina opened it to find an invitation to the district attorney's charity ball for the children's hospital inside.

"My last Falcone forgery, just for you girl." Mouse said.

"Well, I've always been your favourite." Selina smirked.

She may not have cared for Mouse as much as she did for Pam but Selina trusted her more than anyone she'd met and that trust wasn't going to stop with the warning she was giving that could save her and her friends. That's why she took the journey back to the Shamrock. She had to convince Pam to stop going to the Doctor and Sean, no matter what it took.

Selina licked her lips as she stepped towards the door and as her hand grasped the knob she remembered Dexter's screams. Sean's smile as he cut Dexter's fingers off, taking his time to let the boy slowly bleed out, was haunting.

"This is what thieves get." He told Selina when he was sure that Dexter was dead.

She was only ten years old at the time, Dexter only fourteen. Just before he started on Selina someone walked into the shop, distracting him long enough for Selina to escape but she was traumatized. She didn't speak for months, just stayed still. Pam looked after her until she started to open up again and that is why she wondered why Pam kept coming back here. She knew exactly what Sean could do but didn't care.

Before she had a chance to turn the doorknob Selina felt a sharp pain in her neck, which in the few seconds that it took her body to become locked in a state of paralysis she recognized as a needle. Somebody caught her as she fell and dragged her to a van. She wasn't able to move but she was aware. Selina couldn't tell how long the journey had been because the drug she'd been given had made everything seem hazy. After being forced into the van the next thing she could remember was a door being unchained and her being shoved into a dark room, only moonlight illuminating the centre of the room. The feeling in her body had started to come back but she fell to her knees anyway as her torso still felt like a tonne of bricks and just put her hands out in time to stop her faceplanting the floor.

After a few seconds, Selina caught something moving in the darkness out of the corner of her eye. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she could see that the figure was a person.

"Get out here before I kick your ass." She shouted at them trying to sound intimidating but just ending up making herself feel sicker as she tried to get used to carrying her own weight again.

"I don't believe you could kick a soccer ball, let alone my 'ass'." The man said, walking towards Selina from where ever he had been stood as she forced herself to stand up on her knees. He stepped into the beam of light which trailed from the boarded up window to the opposite and she managed to recognize him, letting out a wheezy laugh as she did.

"Who'd you have to piss off to end up in here billionaire?"


	4. Vengeance

Once Bruce had arrived home from the party he went straight into his father's study, this study, ensuring that Alfred wouldn't disturb him by locking the door. It was where he went to think. After his parent's murder, he'd spent every waking, and sleeping, moment in the study as he investigated both their murder and the corruption at Wayne Enterprises. That led to the court of owls and the release of the Tetch virus. After Bruce had broken the conditioning from the Sharman, he told Gordan about the Demon's Head but they found nothing.

It was then that he decided to focus on training for when whoever was leading the Court returned and they did. Ra's Al Ghul revealed himself to Bruce telling him that he was his heir. When Bruce refused Ra's told him that he'd destroy everything Bruce loved so he kept training, preparing for the day that he'd have to fight for Gotham.

Bruce didn't sleep that night, he didn't even leave the study. He was pacing back and forth, sitting and laying down until dawn. He knew that he had let the girl go for some reason but he couldn't figure out why. He hated not knowing.

Bruce finally gave in and opened the door the third time Alfred came knocking. "Master Bruce, Dr Thompkins is here to see you. Shake a leg." He called and Bruce could hear the anger in his voice. "All right, send her in." Bruce told him with a smile. His father had always worked with the door locked so Alfred had assumed that he did too, not once over the years had he ever tried to open the door. As he lay across one of the couches, with his jacket, tie, and shoes randomly placed around the room as he got progressively more uncomfortable throughout the night, he heard the door open and the familiar click of high heels on the wooden floor.

The sound stopped next to him and Bruce looked up to see Dr Thompkins stern face staring back at him, her arms crossed. "Bruce." She said raising an eyebrow. He sighed letting the seventeen-year-old brat mask slip on as he sat up straight. "Doctor, looking delectable, as ever." He said as she sat down next to him and placed her bag on the floor. "So, what happened last night?" She asked getting straight to the point. Alfred had obviously called her. Before answering he couldn't help but glance over at the open door to check for him. He knew he could tell Lee anything and she wouldn't judge, but he didn't have the same luxury with Alfred.

"There was a girl." He said not much louder than a whisper.

"Ahh, I see..." She smiled softly.

"No, you don't." He argued, shrugging in frustration. "She was stealing a necklace."

"Oh..." Lee uttered, dropping the grin. She sat looking at Bruce completely confused. "What?"

"I noticed her and I have got no idea why but I followed her out of the ballroom. She was stealing a necklace from Mrs. Kane's bedroom." Bruce sighed looking down at his feet in shame.

"You tried to stop her." She stated placing what would normally be a comforting hand on his shoulder. He sat in silence. "You did try and stop her didn't you?" She asked, turning her statement into a question and Bruce remained silent. "It's fine, you didn't do anything wrong." She said after giving him a chance to answer putting the 'doctor voice', that he liked to call it, on, just like he'd seen her do to dozens of kids. Including himself.

"But I did!" Bruce jumped up from the couch. He liked that Lee didn't judge but she always sounded so patronizing. "I let her go, I could have stopped her but..." He continued to raise his voice. "I don't know I just let her go." He conceded. He'd spent all night trying to figure it out, how could he explain it to her if he couldn't explain it to himself.

"After all my training, I messed up and I haven't even got a good reason why."

"Bruce I don't know what to say. You were obviously scared." She suggested. Bruce could tell by her tone she was disappointed. "No, I was exhilarated. It was like I had found something, this feeling." He tried to explain but didn't feel like she was making sense.

"What feeling?" She asked.

"It was like... a spark? Excitement, building in my chest. Like when you find something you didn't know that you had lost. But magnified."

"Can you explain?"

"I felt like I recognized her but I don't know where from."

"So you could pick her out of a lineup."

"What?" He exclaimed, eyes widening in shock. "I'm not going to the police."

"Why?" She asked, equally shocked.

"I need to find her again, talk to her. I need to know."

"Bruce, this is not a good idea. It's dangerous and reckless and..."

"It downright bloody stupid is what it is." A voice boomed causing Bruce's head to shoot up. Alfred. Bruce swallowed nervously and looked over to the doorway on his right. "Mr Fox is on the phone for you. He's done that research for you."

"Oh, uh I'm sorry Dr Thompkins. I've got to take this." Bruce told her standing up.

"No, I understand but I want to continue this discussion when you are done." She told him. "As would I master B." Alfred added and Bruce swallowed nervously. "Why don't you take Dr Thompkins to the kitchen and make her something to drink." Bruce turned and smiled at Alfred knowing that he was going to bite his head off once Lee was gone. "I'll be through when I've spoken to Lucius." He loved having somebody around with Alfred because it was the only time their power shifted. It was his idea to keep up appearances after all.

"Certainly, if you'd like to follow me, miss." He said with a scowl directed at Bruce. Lee and Bruce followed Alfred out of the room but he turned left instead of right. Waiting until they were out of earshot he picked up the phone that was resting on the side table.

"Lucius, did you find who out he was working for?" Bruce barely managed to get his words out in a coherent order he was speaking so fast.

"His name is Basil Karlo, one of Hugo Strange's marvellous reanimates, and he works for a man going by the street name Grettle. This man is supposed to work out of the factory on Holly Street in the Narrows." As Lucius spoke Bruce felt tears form in his eyes, Lucius had finally found him. His fist had begun to ball up, anger slowly seeping back in.

The man that had pretended to be his father would pay as would Ra's. Bruce knew that this was his plot, he was trying to destroy the memory of his father but it wasn't going to work.

"Thank you, Lucius." Is all Bruce said before just dropping the phone and heading towards the garage.

"Bruce? Bruce? Are you there? Don't go alone, it's too dangerous!" He called down the phone but it was useless because Bruce was already gone.

* * *

Halfway to the city, Bruce realized how reckless he was being. Even with all of the training in the world he couldn't burst in and take down an entire gang, not by himself anyway. Parking the car he'd driven just far enough outside of the narrows so that it wouldn't get stolen and just close enough so he could easily reach it by running and not running out of breath, Bruce changed into the street clothes that were stored in the trunk and started the walk to the factory growing more and more anxious as it came into view. Any and all thoughts of the girl from the night before were gone, only to be replaced by ones of doubt and regret.

Taking the fire escape of the apartment building opposite the factory, Bruce began to survey the area surrounding it using the roofs. He managed to observe two armed guards by the main entrance but nobody else outside the building at least. Guess they didn't expect anybody to be stupid enough to try and break in mid-morning. The open window on the top floor made Bruce wish he hadn't acted so rashly because he could have brought the grappling hook launcher Lucius had developed for him, to try it out finally.

He settled for the ground floor window as a point of entry telling himself as he climbed in. "It's just scouting, no contact." Stealth wasn't something that came easily to him, to begin with, after his parent's deaths he had a lot of anger and Alfred told him that is what held him back. After what happened with Jerome and the Court of Owls when he was fourteen, he let it go with the idea of finding the person that led them with no leads. After that everything seemed easier.

The corridor he had entered was long and had two doors, one at each end. Bruce headed towards the one with the music playing and almost tripped over his own feet only managing to steady himself with the wall. With each step, he felt his body become heavier until he had to use the wall just to keep himself up. He realized that he'd somehow been drugged as the door ahead of him opened an a man stepped out with a sinister grin from ear to ear.

"Didn't your Mommy ever tell you breaking in somewhere is wrong?" The silver-haired man asked and Bruce, trying to escape found his legs paralyzed, collapsing to the floor hard and unable to use his hands to soften his fall. The last thing he could hear was the man laughing before he finally fell unconscious.

Bruce awoke laying on a cold concrete floor, the only light seeping in through the bars on the single window allowing him to see a strip across the entire room as he sat up. His head was pounding, probably from the fall, and everything else just felt slightly numb. He wasn't sure how long he sat there in the silence just thinking about nothing before the door was opened. As shaky as he was he forced himself to his feet and stepped out of the light, the shadows offered protection. Two men forced somebody, a girl, into the room and as she fell to her knee's the door was slammed shut and locked behind her.

"Get out here before I kick your ass." She shouted as she noticed him but she could barely lift her head so it was more entertaining for Bruce than threatening. "I don't believe you could kick a soccer ball, let alone my ass." Bruce said, taking a couple of steps forward into the light that the moon was providing and the girl forced herself to stand up on her knees. She looked up at Bruce opening her eyes completely. Bruce felt his breath catch in his throat while she let out a wheezy laugh. In the darkness he finally recognized her. Those green eyes. The same green eyes that watched on as his parents were murdered. He'd finally found her.

"Who'd you have to piss off to end up in here billionaire?"


	5. Acquaintances

When the first shot went off she jumped, he had handed over the jewellery, his wallet, she had expected the thief to just walk away but he fired. He hadn't shuddered or flinched, he was calm and collected. Thomas Wayne died before he had hit the ground with the bullet deeply embedded in his heart. Selina could only watch from above as he stumbled back in a last feeble attempt to protect his son as the red began to blossom on his crisp white shirt.

His wife tried to scream but before her mouth could open the revolver was turned on her and two shots were fired. Selina was frozen in place, eleven years old and so filled with dread that she couldn't move, just like the boy. The last Wayne left standing. Standing in front of the man that had just murdered his parents. It seemed like hours but could have only been seconds before the killer simply brushed passed the traumatized boy, like he was walking down a busy high street, and just left him alone.

Selina watched as the boy moved cautiously before falling to his knees trying to somehow get his parents to respond to his pleas. Shaking them only resulted in him getting blood on his hands and as he saw it Selina knew that he had accepted the situation that he was in and she felt guilt seep into her mind. She could have stopped this, distracted the man and given his victims, a chance to disarm him. She may as well have done it the voice in the back of her young mind told her. She helped at least. She had orphaned Bruce Wayne. The boy finding her gaze and police sirens broke the trance she had fallen into, she slipped into the shadows like the killer knowing that she'd see the boy again whether she liked it or not. She wasn't going to abandon him.

* * *

Bruce stood astounded and unable to form a coherent sentence. He couldn't tell what the feeling in the pit of his stomach was. Happiness, dread or the final missing link in his life slipping into place. He felt different. He'd been kidnapped before with the Order of St Dumas and the Court but this wasn't him feeling alive or scared. He felt complete, almost like before everything in his life began to go wrong.

"You got something to say, kid? Spit it out." Selina sneered as he stumbled over his words and she managed to get enough feeling back in her legs to stand up while still having to rely on the wall to stay on her feet.

"You!" He said bluntly, pointing the finger of blame at her. Selina frowned in uncertainty. She barely recognized herself after all these years, there was no way that he could, was there?

"Me?" She asked, narrowing her eyes to give off an expression Bruce could not read. He couldn't tell if it was anger or sadness or happiness but the one thing he could see, through her icy exterior was guilt. He recognized it on her face, just like he did every morning on his own. That was the reason the only mirrors in the manor were in the bathrooms.

"You were there that night, in the alley." Selina swallowed nervously, knowing what he was about to say. "When... my parents were murdered." The air thickened as he spoke for the both of them. She had pushed it from her mind, learned to deal with the guilt, even with Gotham's golden boy being seemingly everywhere she turned. To begin with, she followed him, protected him, even though he didn't know it but over time she gradually backed off until she tried to ensure that she didn't even hear his name. It was hard dealing with the guilt of Dexter when she was helpless but she chose to do nothing with the Wayne's and a constant reminder was not helpful.

"I wasn't there." She lied, choosing to look out into the abyss of darkness rather than to meet his piercing gaze.

It was a problem she'd always had. Great thief, poor liar. She knew that he knew but still denied it in a naive hope that she could convince him otherwise. It fell on deaf ears as he continued.

"You saw what I did, what I didn't do." He admitted looking at his feet in shame and ignoring what she had said. Selina felt anger build up inside. He blamed himself for everything and this only amplified the guilt she carried. She'd spent almost two years of her life looking out for him and keeping him safe for nothing and this is what allowed the walls to slip.

"What? What could you have done? You would be dead just like your folks if you had done anything, I could have..." She froze mid-sentence with her finger pressed against his chest.

The drugs had completely worn off. He wasn't looking at her in disdain or with hatred, Bruce was smiling. He felt overjoyed after years of searching. "Thank you." He whispered.

Two words that through her completely off guard but he was grateful. Somebody who finally understood what he felt. Now she was the one that was speechless. They were face to face, noses inches apart, as they stared into each other's eyes. The silence was perfect. No more words needed to be said as they the hidden connection they shared became apparent. It wasn't awkward or weird. It was peaceful. The first peace either one of them had experienced in years.

It was two hours before somebody had come to check on them and it was time for the plan they had formulated to take place. Bruce was waiting behind the door as a woman opened the door to see Selina stood in the open looking away.

"Come on, the boss wants you." She ordered not stepping into the room.

Bruce watched her through the crack between the wall and the door and as they discussed Selina ignored her demand again. As the larger woman took out a pistol Bruce felt sweat bead on his forehead.

"Where's the boy?" She asked aiming the gun at Selina. She stayed silent. The woman stepped forward and stopped. "What are you, deaf?"

Bruce took the chance and forced the door shut with all the power he could muster crushing her against the doorframe and knocking her unconscious. She slid down the wall and slumped forward, dropping the pistol to the ground.

"Whoa!" Selina exclaimed as she looked over her shoulder.

"She didn't get into place so I had to improvise." Bruce said in a calm tone, opening the door again.

"Remind me to not piss you off." She laughed as she picked up the gun off of the ground earning a scowl from Bruce.

"What?" She asked.

"You don't need that." He told her, stepping into the hall.

"So you want to go out there with dozens of these dummies with just your good intentions rich boy? I don't like guns either but they took my knife and I kinda wanna live to see tomorrow." She said rolling her eyes. "And just so you know, don't tell me what to do."

"Alright, come on." Selina followed him out of the cell with her arm outstretched pointing the gun ahead with her finger on the trigger.

As much as she did hate them, she wasn't risking anything today. The hall led to a walkway above the main factory floor which was filled with armed men surrounding a make-shift boxing ring. They were cheering and shouting as two men fought violently as they tried to kill each other. Bruce and Selina crouched down under the safety barrier surrounding the walkway, making their way down to the ground floor without being spotted.

The sounds of the fight ring began to fade as the quietly managed to slip away towards a set of doors using wooden boxes as cover. Cautiously they approached the doors that were seemingly unguarded, feeling more uneasy. Bruce slowly pushed one of the doors open triggering an ear-piercing alarm. Neither of them looked back, taking off running as footsteps and shouting could be heard behind them. It was still dark but they kept running up the alleyway between the building and a fence. They were seconds away from getting out onto the street when two men stepped out on the sidewalk in front of them. They were holding assault rifles. Turning around there were more of cupcakes people armed with blunt objects.

There was no escape. Any attempt would lead to being shot. "Put the gun down." One of them ordered. Selina looked at Bruce out of the corner of her eye before throwing it to the ground a couple of meters ahead of them. Bruce knew what she meant. 'I told you my plan was better.' It was obvious from her assurance when they were talking.

"Get on your knees and face the wall!" Both of them obliged. Bruce instinctively put his hands above his head as the screeching of tires could be heard.

Selina and Bruce managed to turn their heads quick enough to see a black Lincoln run down the two men with the guns and almost instantly come to a stop. The driver rolled down the window. It was Alfred.

"Get in!" He shouted at them. Bruce hadn't moved until Selina was dragging him to his feet.

"Get the hell up." Stumbling for the first couple of steps, they took off in a short sprint.

They reached the car as the gunfire began and swung the back door open. Bruce dove in, rolling off of the backseats with Selina landing on top of him, the window shattered above them showering them with glass.

"Master Bruce? Who the bloody hell is that?" Alfred asked without looking back as he sped away from the factory and away from the gunfire. From the floor of the car, Bruce looked up at Selina who was half on the seats and half laying on top of him before answering.

"She's..."


	6. Impulse

The drive back to Wayne Manor was more awkward than they had expected. Almost being killed had nothing on the silence and glares from Alfred. Bruce and Selina had taken to staring out of their respective windows, sitting as far apart as was humanly possible without jumping out of the car. An option Selina had considered but begrudgingly decided against. She would never admit it, but after all this time she'd found it nice to interact with Bruce and wasn't ready to give it up yet and she successfully contradicted this with her stern exterior which made the journey that much harder for Bruce.

When they arrived Alfred was the first to get out of the car, slamming the door behind him causing the shards of glass that were left on the window next to Selina to fall. It was still dark out but the sun was just beginning to rise. Bruce looked towards her nervously and she sniggered back. ' _That's what Ivy looks like before I scold her_ ' Selina thought to herself. Bruce noticed Alfred waiting by the fountain. He sighed as he opened the door and step out with Selina close behind but instead of following him over to Alfred she propped herself up on the hood of the car and watched in amusement. It's entertaining when you don't have to do the telling off.

"What the bloody hell was that?" Alfred asked rhetorically.

"I was..." He didn't let him finish and began to shout.

"You could have gotten yourself killed, OR worse."

"Alfred, he pretended to be my father!" Bruce tried to take the power away from him in the argument and failed.

"We agreed you wouldn't do anything without my help!" He shouted. "Do you remember what happened with the court? How close I came to losing you?" Alfred pinched the bridge of his nose, breathing in to calm himself down.

"Bruce, this was them. That bloke." He corrected himself. "Trying to get to you again."

"When Lucius told me I was so angry."

"No, you were downright stupid." Alfred paused looking over at Selina.

"And speaking of stupid, who is this?" He asked causing her to slip off of the car and land on her feet she was so shocked at his bluntness.

"Who the hell..." She began as she lifted an eyebrow in confusion.

"Selina Kyle." Bruce said interrupting her before she had a chance to dig herself a hole and while it was a good thing in the long run, right now it had turned her annoyance towards him. "She saved me." It wasn't deliberate but he'd saved himself as he spoke.

"Really?" Alfred asked turning his gaze towards Selina. "Yeah."

"Well, thank you, Miss Kyle. Your assistance is appreciated."

"I'm just gonna go then." She said with a quick smile. "Don't you want to come in? You can get something to eat and some rest before you head off." Bruce suggested looking disappointed.

She knew she shouldn't. Going in would be a mistake, she was already too attached. There was just something about him that made her say "Sure."

When they reached the family kitchen Selina's jaw dropped. It was huge. Tiles lined the walls up to her about her height, there was more counter space than she could imagine ever having to use and an expensive looking, four seated, table in front of two full-length windows which stretched from the floor to the ceiling. In all her years of stealing from houses like this she'd never taken the time marvel at the beauty, she'd just looked at them in disgust thinking about how much money they had wasted that could have been used to help kids on the street.

"How self-absorbed do you have to be to build a house so big it has to be called a manor?" She asked turning towards Bruce as Alfred began work at the stove.

"Self-absorbed?" He asked, confused. "A manor is just a large house that sits on..." He tried to explain causing Selina to sigh.

"I was kidding dummy." She said rolling her eyes. "God, are all you rich boys so..." She held the 'O' as she tried to think of a word.

"Downright bloody stupid." Alfred suggested without looking up from what he was doing causing Selina to laugh.

Bruce sat opposite her with a scowl on his face which unintentionally turned into a smile as she turned towards him.

"What?" She asked raising an eyebrow. Nobody ever just smiled because of her. Except for Pam, but that was kind of her thing.

"N...Nothing." He quickly replied looking anywhere but at her.

"So... What do you do in this big house all on your lonesome?" Selina asked trying to break the silence that had thickened the air.

"Oh. Uh, Alfred trains me." He tells her as Alfred places two plates of eggs on the table.

"That I do Master Bruce." Alfred says. "And Miss Kyle, I will make up a bed for you." He continues before turning and walking out of the room.

"So, Training?" Selina asked turning her gaze back to Bruce as Alfred's footsteps became almost inaudible on the wooden floor. "He was in the British Special Air Service. He's been teaching me how to fight and stuff." He said, stopping himself from saying any more. 'He's Teaching me how to become the man I need to be' doesn't sound as anywhere near as impressive out loud as it did in his head.

"You do realise no training is gonna prepare you for what's out there." She told him.

"I know." He wasn't sure whether she was imparting some worldly advice on him or trying to say that what he was doing was stupid, but he though that agreeing would be the easiest.

Selina nodded as she began to eat, only realizing how hungry she actually was when she took the first bite. Within a couple of minutes, the plate was clean.

"I'll have to thank Alfred. That's the best I've eaten in months." She told Bruce.

"It's just eggs."

"Yeah, but they're good."

"I make a great Tunisian Brik Eggs. My dad taught me." He said smiling at the memory of his father teaching him to cook.

"I'll have to take you up on that offer one day." Selina suggested as she stood up. She was finding it easy to talk to him and it was beginning to scare her.

"I'm gonna go and sleep now if that's cool." She said, faking a yawn.

"Oh, yes. Let me just show you to your room." Bruce almost jumped out of his seat as he spoke causing the chair to scrape along the ground.

Selina followed Bruce out of the kitchen and down the hall the same way that Alfred walked, heading away from the main entrance. The windows by the back staircase allowed the light in as the sun continued to rise over the trees in the distance. They continued walking in silence until they reached the room, with Selina following Bruce in.

"The bathroom is just through that door." He informed her, pointing across the room.

"Thanks." She said sitting on the bed.

Bruce stayed where he was as she sat down. " Oh, uh. I'll leave you to it." He stammered as she made eye contact before looking towards the door. Just as Bruce was shutting the door he stopped and turned back to see Selina propping up the pillows on the bed.

"And Selina,"

"Yep?" She replied, basking in the comfort of a real bed.

"Don't jump out of any more windows."


	7. Connect

Bruce slept uneasily throughout the day tossing and turning on the couch he had fallen asleep on as a recurring nightmare played over again. He was back in the alley, one hand in held by his mother and the other tucked deeply into his pocket as he shivered from the cold and rain. He tried to call his father as he walked ahead but he didn't seem to hear him as he disappeared steam and fog.

He called him but got no reply. As he tried to speed up he found himself grasping at air, she was gone. He took off sprinting as the unforgettable sound of gunshots echoed from behind him, two gunshots. The labyrinth seemed to be never-ending as his feet began to ache. The walls around him morphed as the earthy smell began to dissipate and the alleys weren't the alleys anymore they were the familiar halls of Wayne Manor. He was home.

He called for Alfred now to no avail. He was alone, walking the corridors only lit by the moonlight. He continued walking unsure why until he was stood outside of the study. The door was slightly ajar and as Bruce pushed it lightly so he could see inside he froze. It was empty except for the bookcases. Lee and Alfred lay, just as his parents had in the alley, in their own blood. They were dead. As Bruce took a step forward he felt the cool barrel of a gun press against his temple.

"I'm Sorry." She said glancing down at the bodies on the floor.

"Seli..."

Bruce bolted upright on the couch in the study with a terrified gasp. He sat for a moment, trembling as he sucked in lungfuls of air until his breathing finally calmed. Alfred obviously hadn't tried to wake him up, like when he was a child investigating his parent's murder. He couldn't complain, after all, there is nothing worse than not getting enough sleep, well almost nothing. After wiping the sleep from his eyes as he sat up straight, Bruce decided to head to what will become the gym but not before taking a detour to the opposite side of the house to check on Selina who was still sleeping soundly. They had begun construction on the gym two months ago, almost immediately after Alfred suggested it because he was right, they needed somewhere to train properly.

After looking in on Selina, Bruce headed back around to the hall he began in, only going through the door at the opposite end. He didn't bother to turn the lights on, he liked the darkness and besides, he knew where he was going. He climbed the rope with ease, reaching the rafters in seconds as the sound of rain could be heard, softly hitting the skylights. It was peaceful to sit up so high, the danger offered a rush Bruce loved. It also gave him a chance to think while he was alone. About Karlo, Selina and Ra's.

If after all these years he could find Selina, maybe there was a chance he could find the others and Selina? How was he supposed to feel about her? He hadn't had a chance to think about it until now. To begin with, he couldn't have been happier but now he'd a chance to consider it, was he supposed to be happy? All she was, was a witness to the worse night of his life. As much as he felt he knew her, he had no idea who she was, not really.

Everything she told him could have been a lie. He hated the idea of it but the seed was planted and doubt was beginning to grow, the only people he knew he could truly trust were Alfred and Lee. They had always been there for him, with everybody else they either tried to get to know him because of his name or his money. Maybe that was what Selina was here to do?

Bruce continued staring aimlessly into the darkness as he contemplated his feelings about finding Selina, so he didn't notice the shadow cross the light leaking in from the door he had left slightly ajar. Selina slipped in unnoticed and smiled mischievously as she began to climb up to the rafters.

"This is a bit creepy." She was stood over him as she spoke before he noticed her. Bruce cast his gaze toward Selina before she'd finished the first word and feel his pulse pounding in his ears blocking out what she had said as he felt his hands slip.

His heart sank out of his chest and his attempt to scream failed as his breath caught in his throat. Everything seemed to go into slow motion as he reached out, grasping at the darkness as he tried to get a grip on something. It felt like an eternity had passed when Selina entwined her fingers with his, stopping him before he plunged to the ground.

"I hate to keep count, but that's twice I've saved you now." Selina told him as she let him get his balance. "You gotta keep it tight here." She said as she tapped her stomach. "If you don't wanna end up a pancake on the ground." Selina sat down next to him, catching him smiling out of the corner of her eye caused her to do something she'd never done, blush.

"Thank you. I know this is going to sound weird but I actually found that rather exhilarating." Bruce couldn't help but laugh at the thought of almost falling and he didn't know why.

"Your weird kid." She smiled.

Bruce rolled his eyes at her comment as they fell into to silence only listening to the rain on the skylight. She liked the darkness too, it offered a place to hide the truth, but that was what he was looking for.

"Who are you?" He asked bluntly.

"What do you mean?" She sighed.

"I know who you are but I mean, what's your story?"

"There's no story, I'm an open book." She said facetiously. "You wanna read my diary?"

"Everybody in Gotham has a story." He told her confidently.

"You really don't know anything do you?" Selina asked and just as he opened his mouth again she cut him off. "What? We both got caught by the same people and you gave me a bed to sleep in, so I'm gonna spill? Tell you how tragic my life is and we'll compare notes?"

Bruce was stunned at her response and tried to calm her. "No, I didn't..."

"Sorry to disappoint you billionaire but my Mom's alive." Selina stopped herself. She knew she'd gone too far but wasn't going to apologize. She wasn't weak.

"I'm sorry." Selina looked at Bruce out of the corner of her eye after he spoke. Most of the things he'd said to her were predictable because he wanted to find out things about her but he'd thrown a curveball. She remained silent.

He, on the other hand, had found out exactly what he wanted to know from her outburst. She was a good person at heart but she hadn't had a good life. She wasn't like most of the people he knew, Tommy was a prime example of an asshole with a perfect life. He'd began to resent Bruce when he realized he wasn't going to help him breeze through life anymore.

"I get it." He told her as they both stared out into the darkness.

"Get what?"

"You had a tough life, living on the streets."

"You don't know what I've been through."

"Your right, I don't. But I do know that you're a good person and I'd like to know more."

Bruce placed his hand over her's causing her to furrow her brow as she looked down at him suddenly invading her personal space. "Uh, I'm flattered but I'm gonna have to take a raincheck kid." She told him as she pulled her hand away. He felt his cheeks begin to heat up and turned his head away as he heard Alfred call him.

"I better find out what..." He turned back and she was gone. The skylight above him was left open allowing a cool breeze to blow through and as he looked at it, it symbolized hope for him. Maybe she would come back.


	8. Seeking

Bruce was still thinking about Selina as the evening drew to a close and he headed out onto the balcony.

"Long day Master Bruce?" Alfred asked as he noticed a colony of bats forming a shadow across the darkening sky.

They reminded him of the day of his parents funeral when he ran away after Gabi told him that he was going to be staying with her and he fell down the old well into the cave. That was where the bats lived and he was stuck down there for hours while they searched the forests. It was dark before Alfred found him but he'd conquered his fear when they swarmed him.

"Long day Alfred." He sighed, sending his guardian a weary look before leaning forward and hanging his arm over the edge of the stone balustrade. It had been a week and they hadn't cleared the air so things were still tense between them.

After a moment of silence, Alfred shot Bruce an apprehensive look as he prepared to do the parental speech that his parents should be here to give but Bruce interrupted him before he could speak.

"I used to hate it when she would bring me out here." He told him. "The bats terrified me but she would sit me on her knee and make me watch them. She told me that they were scared of me too. I couldn't understand it, not until now. When you were in the hospital after Reggie stabbed you, I was terrified that I was going to lose you. I forget, how much you've done for me, how much you care. I know the position I put you in and I'm sorry." Bruce felt his eyes well up but wouldn't let the tears fall as he spoke. As much as he shared with Alfred, he wouldn't let his guardian see him weak, he respected him too much, so Bruce continued to look at the ground which had once made him queazy but now felt like a warm comfort.

He didn't know what else to say. The words 'I'm Sorry' were thrown around so much they'd started to lose their meaning but Bruce meant it, he just hoped Alfred could see that.

"Alfred..." Bruce had given him a moment to answer, for the only response to be silence.

Upon turning around he found the drapes blowing in the warm evening breeze where Alfred had been. Bruce sighed in defeat, before casting the bats one last look and heading back inside.

That night Bruce tossed relentlessly in bed as his recurring nightmare returned. Selina was replaced with a faceless person, wearing bandages on their face to conceal their true identity. After breakfast, and with Alfred's blessing Bruce managed to rope Harvey Dent, his only friend from before he started homeschooling, into coming to the circus with him. Weekday mornings were for training and preparation according to Alfred, who seemed to know everything.

As Harvey got in the car Bruce noticed a fresh bruise on his left cheekbone that joined his black eye from last week, courtesy of Mr Christopher Dent the current district attorney of Gotham City. He knew better than to question it so Bruce chose to ignore it as they headed to the outskirts of the city to visit Katherine Kane, just as her mother had asked, as far as Harvey was concerned anyway.

"I swear on the liberty head." Harvey said as he sat across from Bruce, rolling his double-headed coin across his knuckles. "If she starts acting crazy, I'm waiting in the car." He brushed the fingers on his free hand against the leather of the seat as the red and white striped, giant tent came into view at the end of the dirt road. Bruce, on the other hand, sat wondering how the conversation had deviated so far from the car but was just glad to have a distraction from the last few days.

"You do realize that she isn't as bad as you make her out to be?" Bruce asked, turning towards his friend, taking his eyes off the road.

Harvey laughed out loud, before surprising Bruce as he cried. "Watch out!"

Panic spread across his face and by the time Bruce had a chance to turn back towards the road to see the man who was only about as tall as the hood of the car, they had reached a complete stop that jolted the two boys forward. Lucius had insisted on having the Wayne Tech, well, everything installed into all of the cars at Wayne Manor while managing to keep the exterior the same. Bruce hadn't seen the point in it then but now he couldn't be gladder. No other car could have stopped as quickly as that. The man hadn't even flinched as he stood inches away from being hit. He just stared at Bruce with a look that could only be described as pure hatred before slowly walking out of the way as he whispered curses in Spanish.

"Thank you Lucius." Bruce said aloud, softly pressing his forehead against the steering wheel.

"I was going to say, you don't think she's bad because you're just as weird." Bruce looked at Harvey out of the corner of his eye with a frown.

"What?" He asked.

"In a good way obviously."

Bruce decided against driving the rest of the way up the road and just pulled off to the side of the road before getting out of the car. His legs were shaky as he took his first few steps after the near miss. As they approached the circus, they found trailers surrounding a huge red and white striped tent. Reaching the opening of the tent the boys were stopped by a large brutish man who stepped in their way as they tried to enter. He was at least six-eight and covered head to toe in tattoos.

"Show ain't for 10 hours ladies." He smiled when he'd finished showing off his teeth, the ones that were left anyway, which were chipped and decaying. "Beat it!" Harvey turned to walk away but Bruce stood his ground.

"Beat it, Ladies!" Harvey mimicked under his breath with a chuckle.

"Not Again." Bruce sighed.

"What, pretty boy?" The brute asked stepping towards him.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Bruce said putting his hand up. He turned towards his friend. "Shut up, Harvey."

"Barney, what's going on?" Katherine Kane stepped out of the tent wearing a casual t-shirt and jeans that her mother would die if she saw her in and sporting am incredibly short pixie cut that was somehow still as messy as when she had her auburn hair grown out.

"Baby Bruce?" She asked, shocked seeing her cousin on her shunned doorstep. Harvey sniggered at her nickname for Bruce as he did on the handful of times that he had heard her call him it, catching her attention.

"Oh, you brought short stuff." She said to Harvey, silencing him.

She clearly still remembered the incident with the wet floor and the towel.

"Anyway, how have you been cuz?" She asked pulling an unwilling Bruce into a hug. It had been over a year since he'd last seen her and he'd forgotten that she was so gregarious. That must have been why she joined the circus.

"I've been better Katherine, how are you?"

"Well, my parents are still pissed at me for dropping out of the Academy before graduation so I'm doing great!" She exclaimed.

"I'm gonna wait in the car." Harvey told Bruce, walking away before letting him respond.

"He just needs to cool off." Bruce said, watching his friend walk away. "You know how he is."

"Yeah, I remember." She turned toward the guard still standing next to them. "Barn, you wanna take a break."

"I'll be back in fifteen." He told her before going into the tent.

She turned back to Bruce with a knowing look. "Walk with me, Bruce."

Kate led Bruce into the main tent where there was everything from clowns to tiger trainers. She ensured to introduce him to each of them as they circled around the centre area.

"Mick and Mack the Tiger Taming Twins."

"Zera, Hayley, George and Malikai the tightrope walkers."

"The Great Zachary Zatara, our resident magician."

"The Trapeze Artists, Mary and John."

When they finally exited, Kate pulled Bruce to the side, away from prying eyes.

"As much as I have loved this family reunion, what the hell do you want from me?" She scowled.

"I need information about a guy." Bruce told her.

"Bruce…" Kate whined knowing that he was drawing her curiosity.

"He goes by the street name Grettle." He continued.

"Don't know him." She told him bluntly.

"But your people might." Kate closed her eyes and took a deep breath, contemplating getting involved.

"Why?" She asked. "Why should I help you?"

"Have you heard of a man called Basil Karlo?"

"No."

"He calls himself Clayface. He impersonated my father, Kathrine. I need to know why."

"Alright." She agreed.

"Thank you, Kathrine, you don't know what this means to me." He said sincerely.

She didn't know how much this meant to him. He knew it was connected to Ra's Al Ghul, so it was one step closer to finding him.

"Seriously though B, Clayface is involved with some bad people. You might be better off not knowing and just be glad that you're alive."

"I just need to know, I would ask if it wasn't important."

"I'll ask but I can't promise anything, they try to keep their noses clean after the Valeska kid killed his Mom."

"I appreciate it, you're clearly happier here than you've been for a long time. I don't want to do anything to ruin that."

"Then get outta here then, I'll call you." She told him before heading back into the main tent.

Bruce hated getting her involved, but she had her ear to the ground. He wouldn't have needed to if he hadn't acted like such a fool when he was with Selina. Looking back, he was embarrassed, acting like a hormonal teenager wasn't exactly in his nature and it'd scared her off. Even now, thinking about looking at the window as hope seemed stupid. It had been a week now and he hadn't heard anything from her.

Arriving back at the car, Bruce found Harvey playing with the radio. "Breaking news!" The presenter announced as Bruce got into the driver's seat. "Early this morning it was reported that a second victim of the killer only known as Professor Pyg was found by police."

"Shit! Better watch your back Bruce, you tend to draw in the crazy ones." Harvey joked but Bruce didn't laugh.

"Captain James Gordan declined to comment as the failure of his department was questioned..." Bruce switched the radio, having heard enough of Harvey's sick jokes for one day.

"Just don't." Bruce told him as he turned the car around.

It took Harvey a second to think over what he had said. "I'm sorry, I didn't think."

"You never do." Bruce reminded him sternly.

The drive back to the city was uncomfortable, to say the least, with Harvey shooting Bruce side glances to see if he had calmed down every few minutes.

"Look," Harvey began, leaning back in the open passenger's window outside of city hall. "I'm sorry man."

"It's fine." Bruce breathed, thinking about what he had heard on the radio.

"You're still coming to my Dad's party tonight?" He asked, hopeful that he hadn't alienated one of his only friends.

Shit. He had forgotten about the charity ball tonight because Alfred hadn't brought it up this morning over breakfast. Well, it wasn't really for the children's hospital after all. They'd get the money but it was really just Gotham's elite showing force, letting those less fortunate know that their lives were controlled by those that were better off.

"Yeah... I wouldn't miss it Harvey." He told his friend, he could multi-task tonight.

"I'll see you tonight then?"

"See you tonight." Bruce replied, beginning to formulate a plan in his head.


	9. Threat

The grainy carpet in Selina's apartment scratched against the bottom of her bare feet as she paced the apartment nervously. She'd called Pam over half an hour ago and was beginning to get worried, but she was glad for the extra time alone. She stopped, staring at the clock for a moment. Although the minutes were beginning to feel longer every time that she looked at the ticking cat on the wall, she still hadn't come up with a way to convince Pam that they need to stop working for Buzz other than the trying the truth but she knew that that wasn't going to work, this was Pam.

"What was so urgent?" Pam's voice drew Selina's attention over to the window and she felt the corners of her mouth involuntarily curve up. She rushed over to her friend, embracing her tightly, glad that she was safe. She had no idea what she would do if she lost her.

"Uff! Okay, not what I was expecting." Pam said, reacting to the unexpected tackle. Selina, completely recovered from her lapse in judgement of seeing her friend safe, hit Pam hard on the shoulder as she pulled away from her.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?" She pouted.

"I said emergency! It doesn't take half hour to get here you doofus." Selina told her.

"Well after yesterday..." Pam glanced at the window frame that separated them, leaving her out in the cold. "You gonna let me in or what?" She asked throwing her arms in the air.

"I dunno, how longs that gonna take?" Selina smirked, stepping out of her way.

The redhead struggled to step in wearing heels and grabbed Selina's arm to steady herself. She knew that she was in the clear for yesterday's argument took a shaky breath as she realised that whatever Selina wanted wasn't good. "So, uh, what did you want me for?"

"Look I..." Selina began to speak before trailing off as she failed her first approach at the topic.

"Shit. Your not dying are you?" Pam asked as she collapsed onto the couch in an overly dramatic way to try and lighten the mood, shifting on the cushion as she tried to get comfortable. "Nine lives, remember?" Selina joked, sitting next to her.

Selina was always blunt, she wasn't used to having to soften up what she was going to say.

"Mouse told me now would be a good time to get out."

Pam frowned, her red eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "What?"

"Pam, there's bad stuff coming and you can't end up involved, it's too dangerous." Pam sat for a second and felt her blood boil. She always did this, treated her like a child. Selina thought that she had to take care of her and Pam hated it. She hadn't had parents for a long time, she didn't need one now.

"Why do you always treat me like I'm your child?" Selina frowned. "I don't, I just..."

"See, you're doing it now." Pam interjected, pointing at her softening facial features. Selina didn't even realise she was doing it. "Why can't you just be straight with me? I don't need protecting. Stop trying to be my Mom and start being my friend." She felt a weight lift off her chest as she said each word, knowing that it was the truth, she'd just never gotten the chance to say it.

Selina just sat letting what Pam had said sink in. She did see her as a child, she couldn't help it. She knew it was true but that didn't mean that she had to like it. "Do you know what? Screw you..." Selina stood up and Pam followed suit, towering over her in the green heels that she'd put on this morning.

"Let me guess, 'You go get yourself killed!'" Pam shouted, mimicking Selina's voice. "'See if I care!' Just like every time, you run away from your problems. Well did you ever consider that one day I might just get tired of waiting around to apologize to you for something that you've done?"

Selina felt tears stinging her eyes but she refused to let them fall. Pam was her oldest friend and she hadn't even considered how she had felt. "Your right." Her voice softened but her flight reflex got the better of her.

"Don't be here when I get back." Selina stormed out, heading up the fire escape towards the roof. She barely got two flights up before she broke down, sitting on the metal stairs as she cried. Everything Pam had said was the truth but she couldn't handle it and once again she had run away. She was starting to believe that feelings weren't the worst thing in the world like she had come to think, that top spot was reserved for her.

Selina wasn't sure how long she'd been sat on the rusted stairs before it began to rain but Pam hadn't left, unless she had gone out of the front door which Selina had doubted. As it got heavier, she finally got to her feet and headed up to the roof. She needed to blow off some steam and she wasn't ready to see Pam yet, but just running up the steps seemed to help clear her mind. Pam was right, she needed to stop babying her and start trusting her but she let her own deep-rooted need to be needed get the better of her every single time.

She reached the rooftop of her apartment building, Selina's eyes were still red and puffy but the feeling of the rain and wind against her skin felt good, almost freeing. She walked over to the opposite side of the roof for a good run up before taking in the morning air, it was surprisingly clear in the rain as if the smog clears as actual clouds move across the sky. While she knew that this wasn't true and the air in this part of town was just a filthy as the streets below, it brought a smile to her face.

The thin layer of water that had settled on the gravel made small splashing noises with each step as Selina sped towards the edge of the roof, in the direction of the fire escape. She pushed off of the lip on the edge of the building and sent herself over the alleyway and towards the apartment building opposite. She felt most alive when she was high up above the streets where people seemed to pretend that Gotham was a normal city. Nothing was normal in Gotham, Selina wasn't sure it ever had been.

She landed on her target with precision, bending her knees, feeling the tingling in her legs that came with every successful jump before taking off into another sprint towards the next building. Selina knew that the feeling was temporary and she needed to speak to Pam before she lost her but she didn't want to think about that now. It was just her, nobody to lie to or to put a brave face on for, and that was good enough, even if it was just for this moment.

* * *

As Selina's running took her into Falcone territory, towards Buzz's bar, she was brought back to reality. "It's now or never." She mumbled to herself as she headed towards the front door. She'd only ever seen Benny once or twice, he looked threatening but he was a lug. Slow and strong were a terrible combination, that is why Selina loved her build, small and quick was deceiving. The stink eye that he gave her as she breezed passed him proved that he had recognised her as the girl that stole his bonus every other week. He'd be glad to know that she was quitting.

Lola was sat in her usual booth, head in today's newspaper as always, but there was no singer this morning. Selina's clothes and hair dripped water across the shiny black vinyl flooring as she approaching the office, not saying anything to Lola apparently got more attention than actually talking to her as she put her newspaper down and watched as Selina, not bothering to knock, walk with purpose into her daughter's office. It was the first time that the girl had ever managed to hold her interest.

"You look awful." Buzz said to Selina without even looking up from the papers on her desk.

"Can we talk?" Selina requested.

Buzz glanced at Selina out of the corner of her eye before carefully placing the golden pen on the table. She looked up at the younger girl expectant, after all, she hadn't been expecting a visit so soon.

"I'm done with all this." Selina told her, gesturing with her hand to the office and club as a whole. "I''m gonna go straight."

Buzz just studied her, tilting her head slightly and pursing her lips. It made Selina nervous.

"Okay." She said simply before picking her pen up and getting back on with her paperwork.

Selina watched her, mouth slightly agape. "Okay? Just like that?" She asked.

"What'd you expect, a retirement party?"

"No, I just... I don't know a catch I guess."

"We're friends aren't we Baby?" She asked, looking up slightly to make eye contact.

"Well, yeah of course." Selina told her without hesitating, she couldn't risk screwing up.

"Friends respect each other, there's a bond. I respect you, so I wouldn't stop you trying to change." She said sincerely. "But I'm here if you ever wanna get back in the business. Talents like yours, they shouldn't go to waste."

"I've just gotta get some money together over the next couple of months for me and Pam." Buzz interjected. "Pamela too?"

"Yeah."

"Good luck." She then turned her attention back to her work and Selina took it as her cue to leave, heading for the door only for Buzz's voice to call her back. "Selina."

She looked towards Buzz who was still scribbling down numbers on a piece of paper. "If you or Pamela try to or do defect with your computer friend I will hunt you down and personally cut you into tiny pieces while you're still alive, okay?"

Selina swallowed nervously. "I wouldn't dream of it." She said sweetly, through gritted teeth. Buzz really was a crazy bitch.

"Good, I'll see you around Kitty Cat." Selina walked briskly out of the office to come face to face with Lola who stood hunched over, her scoliosis, looking right into her eyes.

"You made the right choice child." She mumbled before hobbling passed her. The woman had barely spoken to her for years and now she'd decided to congratulate her, it gave Selina sickening feeling in her stomach. Who the hell was that old bitch to judge her?

Selina ignored the thought of Lola judging her to bask in the knowledge that she just had one more thing to do, find money, starting with the Hospital Charity Ball at the Town Hall tonight. It was Mouse's final gift to her and she was going to make the most of it with or without Pam. Then just a few more hits before she could leave Gotham behind.


	10. Date Night - Part One

The crisp taste of cheap champagne stung Bruce's throat as he brought another crystal glass up to his lips. If he was going to be stuck at another one of these publicity auctions, then he would need to have a slight buzz. After all, Harvey, who had insisted that he come, was nowhere to be seen, as far as Bruce knew, he was off in some far corner of the room sucking the face off of his date.

Bruce was stuck alone, drinking champagne and talking to people whose only concern was his money and his company. He pulled lightly at his collar and wondered why with all his money, he had still ended up wearing a suit that was slightly too tight. He'd considered leaving but he knew that Alfred wouldn't be happy. "What are the papers going to read?" He could hear him saying.

"Gotham's first son, underage drinking?" Bruce heard a voice to his right, not the voice of a solicit or a business person though.

"You shouldn't be here, should you?" He asked, turning towards a woman in her mid-twenties. She looked like she belonged, but she didn't sound like it.

"I should actually." She said, sticking her hand out and flicking her shoulder-length blonde hair out of her face. "Vicky Vale, Channel Nine News. I'm covering the event." Bruce shook her hand and she flashed her press pass with her free hand. "It's nice to meet you, Miss Vale." Bruce said, flashing his billionaire smile.

"Likewise, Mr Wayne." She smiled back, narrowing her eyes as she saw a story. "What do you think the rumours?" She asked, taking a glass from a passing waiter.

"I prefer to stick to the facts but if you were trying to gauge a reaction to write about in your tabloid, I assure you that you will need to be more specific." He told her looking back out at the crowd of dancing couples as the mini-orchestra continued to play up on the stage.

"Ouch." She chuckled. "You don't like to mess around do you, Mr Wayne? Or can I call you Bruce?"

"That's up to you, Miss Vale." Bruce took another sip from his glass.

She took a second to think before asking her next question. "What does a teenage billionaire do during the day."

"Well..." He began to recount the same speech about being a teenage billionaire that he had come up with years ago but trailed off as his attention was drawn to a familiar girl stalking through the dancing couples.

Selina's dress was simple and elegant, the colour of a raven's feather with a snug waist, the skirt flared out from her hips and fell to just below her knees, showing off her legs which were held into stilettos by a thin strap and a tiny silver buckle. A few stray curls hung over the right side of her forehead, from the rest of her hair which was pinned to the top of her head, bobbing as she walked.

She managed to slip in unnoticed, Mouse's invitation had worked just as she said it would. Selina loved an event like a charity auction because she just had to come up with the right story and she could get to work. It was easy money.

"Hi, I volunteer for the children's ward." She told a tall, auburn-haired woman as she slipped a diamond ring off of her finger pulling back from a handshake. It was the same way she removed watches and bracelets.

"Oh, really? That's so noble." The woman gushed.

Selina smiled sweetly before excusing herself from the conversation under the guise that she needed to use the bathroom. She headed across the room towards a wealthy looking man whom she had seen wearing a gold pocket watch. It was an easy grab, out of his right pocket. Once she had eyes on him, Selina just watched, waiting for him to check the time.

Before she had the chance to strike, she felt somebody grab her left hand. Selina spun with her right fist raised only for him to catch it in his hand. She was face to face with Bruce, due to the heels, and she loosened her fist, lacing her fingers with his as he placed his other hand on her hip. Bruce wasn't sure what had come over him.

"We have to stop meeting like this." He joked, trying to break the ice as they began to sway to the music like all of the other couples around them.

"You've gotta stop sneaking up on me." Retorted Selina with a smirk, he was more confident than she remembered. She liked it.

They just danced, enjoying the moment before Bruce spoke again. "That's a lovely dress you're wearing."

"You don't scrub up too badly yourself." She said, looking him up and down quickly. "You know, for a billionaire."

"Why'd you come tonight?" He asked her.

Selina leaned in close so that she was cheek to cheek with Bruce. "I think we both know why I'm here, why are you?" She whispered in his ear.

"For a friend." Bruce said before swallowing nervously as he noticed how close they were.

"I never would've figured you were the type for friends." She joked and she felt him smile against her skin.

"But I was hoping that I would see you again." He told her, causing her cheeks to warm up.

"Really?" She asked with raised eyebrows and Bruce pulled back so they were back at arm's length.

Selina's gaze drifted from his eyes to his lips before he spoke again. "I wanted to ask you some questions." Her smile dropped.

"Oh..." She exhaled, holding the 'h' as she did. He just wanted information.

"If we could go somewhere private, after the party..."

"This..." She interrupted him, looking around. "Isn't a party."

"What is then?"

"A party is dancing to actual music, not this fancy crap and it doesn't involve dressing up." She informed him.

"We're dancing now..."

"Aren't you tired of all this bullshit, I can take you to a real party, if you want." She offered, feeling her heart pounding in her chest.

"What do you mean?"

"It's a club, I go there all the time. It'll be fun."

She wanted to have some real fun, it wasn't like she was any rush to leave. She could hit plenty more places where she'd get more money in the next few months. Bruce narrowed his eyes as he considered the offer, his impulsiveness is what got him into trouble last time. On the other hand, he could get the information that he needs and spend some more time with Selina.

"Right now?" He asked.

"Sure." She said, placing the hand she had snaked around the back of his neck, on his chest, stopping their movement. His gaze seemed to be piercing into Selina's soul as he looked down into her eyes.

"Alright." He said quietly looking down into her eyes. He'd managed to take her by surprise for the second time that night. She hadn't expected him to be so receptive to the idea of going to the narrows, she knew that most rich people avoided it like it was the scourge of the earth.

"Let's go outside." She told him, before leading him through the crowd, holding his hand.

"I have a car around the corner." Bruce told Selina as she pulled him away from city hall.

"Just trust me." She insisted as a response from Alfred came through via text.

'Be safe Master B.' He couldn't, not tell Alfred, even if Selina made fun of him for it.

They had walked three blocks before they found what she was looking for, a fire escape. Selina leaned down and unstrapped her heels before handing them to Bruce who raised an eyebrow in confusion. She jumped, using the wall as leverage to grab onto the ladder and pull it down with her body weight.

"Come on." She told Bruce who stared in awe. "Need to swing past my apartment and change." She gestured to her dress as she spoke and Bruce found his eyes wandering, scanning her supple frame involuntarily as she stood before him.

"Bruce." She said, snapping him out of his trance.

Bruce felt his cheeks grow warm as he realised he had been caught. "Why do we need the fire escape?" He asked, changing the subject in the hope that she wouldn't mention the fact that he had been gawping at her. He wasn't as used to female companionship as he would like to admit. Those that were his age didn't generally enjoy going out to the social occasions that he was accustom to attending.

"You'll understand when we get there." She didn't feel explaining why she barricaded her front door.

"Now," She said narrowing her eyes with a mischievous half-smile. "You first, pervert."

Bruce felt his cheeks flush again. He averted her gaze and climbed without further questions. She was enjoying his embarrassment.

"Maybe it's my turn to check you out." Selina said as she followed him up the ladder.

Upon reaching the rooftop, the air was still thick and Bruce stood awkwardly as Selina told him to leave her shoes, she'd come back for them soon, if she remembered. "When you jump, you've got to get a good run up and then you have to push off of the lip or edge." She told Bruce.

"Jump?" His eyes widened. "Where?"

"Not far, gaps like this." She looked over the edge at the fifty or sixty-foot drop. "It'll be easier once you've tried it, I promise."

As she stared out into the night, enjoying the feeling of the gravel under her bare feet, Bruce stepped back, building himself up in his head. If he was going to do this, he'd need to do it now or he never would.

"Trick is to focus on the other side and not look down." Bruce had already started running before she had a chance to finish her 'breakdown'. "Bruce?" Selina turned to her right as she heard the gravel shifting under his shoes, to see him take off and felt her heart fall from her chest.

As the ground disappeared from below his feet, Bruce tucked his feet up to his chest like he'd been taught by a free runner in Europe, it was some of the only training that he had, had and not actually put into practice. He'd been taught how to jump, fall and land correctly, but there was no right way to fall from this height. The adjacent rooftop seemed to take minutes to appear when in actual fact, it was just a few seconds.

Bruce took a second, remaining crouched down as he felt adrenaline flood his system. Selina was still stood on the building that they reached the top of only a minute or so before, shocked at his bold and reckless act when her lips twisted into a smile that didn't quite reach her green eyes as she attempted to fight it. She didn't want him to turn around and see her but if this wasn't going to scare him off, she guessed, nothing would.


	11. Date Night - Part Two

They arrived at Selina's apartment in just under half an hour and she remained impressed by Bruce's agility. "Why the window?" He asked, cautiously placing his hands on the window frame to steady himself as he looked in. "Is this your apartment?"

"No, I killed the owners. They're behind the counter." Bruce froze, one leg in and one leg out. His eyes widened, like a deer caught in headlights. Bruce's tie drifted from side to side as the night breeze caught the end hanging out of his pocket.

"What?" Selina looked over her shoulder at his reaction and laughed, and he sighed.

She was joking. It was just a joke. Bruce inhaled deeply through his nose and climbed the rest of the way in the window. Selina hadn't turned the lights on so Bruce couldn't see much, but he noticed that it was an open floor plan, excluding the bedroom. The only things filling the living space seemed to be a television and couch. To Bruce, it looked more like a squat than a place somebody owned. Either that or she didn't plan on sticking around here for long. "This is a lovely home."

"Whatever."Selina said, ignoring his compliment as she reached over her shoulder as if trying to scratch an itch. She probably thought that he was being sarcastic. "Come over here." She told him.

Bruce followed her to the couch, and she stood with her back to him. "Unzip it, please." She asked, continuing her blunt requests. She pulled the first pin of many holding her hair on her head out, wincing as pulled on a few stray hairs.

"Your dress?" Bruce swallowed nervously as his eyes scanned down her back.

Selina shook her head in dismay. "Obviously, genius." She said before pulling at another bobby pin.

Bruce closed the gap between the two of them and his warm breath on the back of Selina's neck made her shiver. He reached up a shaky hand and carefully, as to not make contact with her skin, he took the zipper between his forefinger and thumb. As he pulled it down revealing more of her milky skin, Bruce felt his mouth run dry. When he reached the small of her back, he stopped, taking a step back and unable to stop himself admiring her form.

"Thanks," She chirped over her shoulder, "I'll just be a sec." She told him, going into her room. Selina barely waited for the door to click shut before she let the dress fall to the floor. She audibly sighed in relief and started searching the floor around the bed, which was essentially her wardrobe, for something clean to wear.

Bruce now left alone, sat down awkwardly on the edge of the couch, not sure what else to do. He took off his dinner jacket after a few moments of and placed it, folded neatly next to himself on the couch as he began to feel warm. "Selina," Bruce called, thinking now was a better time than any to get the information he needed.

"Y..." She tried to speak, almost falling over as she pulled a pair of jeans on. "Yeah?" She said, after steadying herself.

"I wanted to ask you about Grettle."

"Why, he's dead?" She told him, buttoning up the top of her jeans.

"Dead?" Bruce asked, taken aback.

"Yeah, disappeared the night after he got us."

"How do you know he's dead?" He was hopeful. This was his only lead to Clayface, he needed it to pan out.

"Showed up all cut up. 'Perfected' by the Pyg the news said." Bruce had been meaning to look into the Pyg, of course, it would come back around to haunt him.

'Great, another loose end.' Bruce thought to himself. Death didn't affect him in the same way that it used to, he'd seen enough dead bodies, including Alfred's to have become more or less numb to it. Though tomorrow he'd wallow in it, wonder whether it was his fault or not.

"Who taught you how to dance anyway, your butler." She sniggered from the adjacent room.

"No," Bruce assured her. "He hired me a teacher."

Selina was bewildered at the matter-a-fact way he spoke as she pulled the loose fitting t-shirt, that was slashed at the shoulders over her head. Then again, they had just been casually discussing a murder in a way that would be frowned upon, across the bay in Metropolis. Not in Gotham though, this sort of thing was normal. She shrugged her shoulders and headed back out into the living area.

"Is my jacket next to you?" She asked, heading over to the couch.

Sure enough, after a quick look, Bruce found her leather jacket on the floor by his feet and he met her at the edge of the couch. The cool leather felt refreshing against Selina's skin, she was beginning to feel herself again.

"What about Clayface?" Bruce asked her as she settled back into her regular attire.

"What about him?"

"Is there anything you can tell me about him?"

Selina took a second to think. "I might know a few places, we could ask some questions."

"We?"

"Yeah, you think you could find the squats and fences in the slums?"

"There aren't slums in Gotham." Selina raised her eyebrows, this clearly wasn't up for discussion. After all, Bruce was a privileged rich boy. "Thank you, Selina."

Selina's face changed as she took another step towards him. Her eyes narrowed as a small smile, that made her lips look fuller, began to push against her cheeks and she placed a hand on his cheek, lightly tracing her nails on his freshly shaved skin.

"Hey, pretty boy..." She whispered softly.

Bruce felt light beads of sweat form on his brow as she looked into his eyes. Her piercing gaze never left his as he began to move his head closer. Their foreheads were almost touching when Bruce placed his right hand onto her hip. She took the movement as an opportunity, slipping under his arm. By the time that he turned around, she was already out on the fire escape. Her smile now full of childish glee and eyes wide, it was Bruce's turn to narrow his eyes as she spoke. "...Catch me."

He wasn't going to let her get away with that. Bruce took off after her, vaulting over the window ledge. The stairs rumbled under his feet as he chased her to the top. It took him almost six blocks to finally catch up and realise that she'd managed to make him do things that he'd never thought possible since his parents died. He hadn't had to hide anything from her. He hadn't forced himself to think whether or not Alfred would approve before he followed her. He just enjoy that moment, this moment. He wanted it to last as long as possible. Tomorrow, when the sun came up, he'd be Bruce Wayne, entitled billionaire brat. Tonight he could just be himself, he didn't need to wear a mask.

"We're here." She told him as he came to a stop in front of her. They could hear the sounds of people cheering and the thumping of music under their feet. "On a rooftop?" He joked, earning a sarcastic laugh from Selina. "Ha! Ha! Come on," She said, brushing past him and taking his hand as she did to lead him down to street level.

They slipped into the crowd easily, the people were too concerned with their own business to notice the two of them climbing down, besides there were stranger things going on here than two teenagers climbing down the side of a building. Drug deals and solicitation were common as Bruce learned having to turn down offers of cocaine and venom, as well as the advances of a scantily clad woman who didn't seem even slightly dissuaded when he informed her that he and Selina were together.

They both followed the line around the corner as it moved slowly where Selina pushed Bruce lightly against the brick wall.

"Here." She told him, ruffling his hair before staring at him confused. "How?" She questioned herself before her eyes lit up.

"Gimme twenty dollars."

"What? I don't carry cash." Bruce told her, unsure why she was asking.

"Alright," She looked him up and down. "Your watch." She took his wrist and began to unfasten it before he had a chance to answer but Bruce didn't bother stopping her.

"Why?" She continued to ignore him as she took the watch off his wrist and looked past him once she had it in her hands.

"You, gimme your jacket." She called out, approaching a man sat on the other side of the street.

Bruce continued to move with the line, watching as Selina spoke to the man, now unable to hear what she was saying. The man held the fleece defensively closed and Selina held the watch out to him. His interest peek, he tried to take it from her and she pulled it out of his reach. He took off the fleece and handed it to her but when he went to take the watch, she pulled it away again. She finally handed it to him when he held out his shoes for her to take and Bruce watched, utterly confused.

"These are for you." Selina told him as she stood next to him again.

"Excuse me." He'd just watched her trade his watch for a homeless man's jacket and shoes, he wanted a better explanation.

"You're not getting in there." She said, pointing at the pink neon sign that read 'Heavy Heavy Club'. "Looking so... clean."

"You expect me." Bruce stated, his eyes widening. "To put those on."

"Stop acting like a drama queen."

They made their way past the bouncer with ease and Bruce immediately removed the jacket, wondering what he was doing but for some unknown reason, he continued to allow Selina to lead him through the narrow corridor which opened up to a large room where the electronic music was deafening. People were jumping and bobbing their heads to the music. He could feel the ground shaking with the weight of the crowd. It confused Bruce, this was not dancing.

"Selina," He shouted, stopping her from joining the swelling crowd. "What is this?"

She slipped her hand from his and smirked as she disappeared between two people and blended in with everybody else. Bruce called after her, following her in and found himself surrounded by people just enjoying the moment. As he walked through he got odd looks from those enjoying themselves as he bumped into them, whispering unheard apologies. The energy was intoxicating, drawing him in as he gave up searching for Selina.

This is why she led him in, to draw him in. He realised why she had brought him here as he joined in, jumping unenthusiastically at first. Just like when he was with her, he wasn't Bruce Wayne here, he was just another lost soul. Bruce knew that Selina was watching him, somewhere, as he began to blend in with everybody else as his jumping and head bobbing became more rhythmic.

"I told you that you'd prefer it." He heard from behind him, confirming his suspicions that he was being watched.

Bruce turned around, coming face to face with Selina. He stopped, he wasn't nervous like he was in her apartment. Bruce's searching eyes looked deep into Selina's for an answer to a question he didn't have to ask. She took a step forward, now mere inches separated them. Selina closed the gap, raising one of her hands and placing it flat on his chest. This wasn't enough for him so he placed a hand on her hip, pulling her against him. Selina let out a gasp that was silenced by Bruce pressing his lips against hers.

With one movement it all became real. This wasn't just shameless flirting or teasing, Bruce had made everything real. Selina wanted nothing more than to run away but she couldn't. She found herself, just like Bruce did, intoxicated by her partner whom only a few weeks ago was a stranger. It was far from love, they just understood each other. They could see the person behind the mask and that was enough, even if it was just for now.


	12. Last Rites

Pamela Isley wasn't strong. She wasn't brave. She didn't have a backbone. She relied on perfume to get what she wanted. That all change when she stood up to her best friend or she thought it would. She did what she wanted, worked with Dr Bloom, went to The Shamrock. But she didn't stand up for herself. She wasn't brave. She just did as she was told and hoped she wouldn't make Dr Bloom angry.

At first, Pam blamed it on the stress. After all, they were on the verge of a breakthrough and he barely slept but as the week went on she realised Selina was right. She was just a scared little girl. He'd ordered her to get him a subject.

"Like an animal?" She'd asked naively.

"No, you insolent girl. A person, preferably a child." He ordered before looking back down his microscope.

"I'm not..."

"You are!"

Dr Bloom leapt to his feet sending his chair crashing into the wall. His speed surprised Pam. If he didn't carry so much weight, Dr Bloom would look like a feeble man, with his thinning grey hair, wrinkled face and rounded glass, however, his burly frame gave both himself and those around him the illusion that he carried strength. He stalked towards her slowly as he spoke and Pam backed up nervously. "I will not have a pathetic waste of space ruin years of work."

Pam's back hit the wall and now he was mere inches away. She cowered, using her arms in an attempt to protect herself. "You will do what I tell you to do or I will have to find another use for you."

Dr Bloom raised a fist and Pam flinched, her red hair falling in front of her face as she began the cry. He stopped, his fist so close to her face that she could feel his knuckle pressing into her cheek, and laughed.

"I would never hit a woman you fool." He told her as if what he had done was normal.

Pam felt stupid. Of course, he wouldn't hit her. She helped him after all, he needed her. Even if he would never admit it, she'd been the one to find the BLO gene that led to the breakthrough. It didn't matter to her that he would take credit for her work, all she wanted to do was help people.

"I wouldn't hurt a child either." He informed her as she composed herself, wiping the tears that had fallen after his intimidation game. "The cure works, I just need the subject and a child will be more receptive due to their development stage." He knew that she knew everything he had said because she had told him it in the first place, only in the context of rats rather than humans. He was just asserting his dominance.

"I..." Pam tried to apologise but he cut her off again before she could speak. "The child will not be harmed." He sighed.

Pam pushed her doubts down as she took in a deep breath. "Okay, I'll do it."

* * *

Selina reluctantly awoke, surprised to find herself asleep in her own bed for the first time in the last month but was reminded of the reason why as she noticed she was still wearing her clothes from the previous night and realised that she was teetering on the edge of falling off of the bed.

"Ouch." Bruce groaned as Selina hit his chest to get him to move over. ' _He was already awake, what an asshole._ ' She thought to herself as he shifted further from the door and she settled onto her back, stretching her arms up towards the wall where the headboard should be.

"I should go..." Bruce began but remained completely still. "Alfred will be worried."

After a brief pause, Selina chuckled to herself. "You really know how to make a girl feel special."

"Regular casanova."

"Casa-what?"

"Never..." Bruce was interrupted by a high pitched voice calling Selina's name that woke her up immediately.

"Pam?" Selina wonders as she jolts forward. The unmistakable sound of her heels on scrapping on the grainy carpet confirmed her suspicions.

"Who's Pam?" Bruce asks, forcing himself up, leaning back on his elbows.

"Get off."

"What?" As the doorknob began to twist Selina decided on the fastest option and shoved Bruce, causing him to roll off of the bed and hit the floor hard.

"Selina?" Pam called as she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"Pam, uh, hey."

"Ouch!" They heard from behind the bed.

Selina furrowed her brow in frustration. "Shit." She whispered under her breath. _He couldn't keep his mouth shut for two seconds_.

"Sorry, but what?" A wide-eyed Pam asked.

"Pam it's not..."

"Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you're getting yourself laid."

"Pam I didn't..."

"Who's the lucky guy?" Selina sighed in defeat.

Bruce sat up, still on the ground so only his head popped up above the mattress. "You must be Pam."

"You?" She gasped.

"Bruce." Selina warned.

"You know we didn't..." Bruce began, trying to explain in the same way Selina did.

"Bruce." She repeated more harshly.

"Selina!" Pam and Bruce said simultaneously.

"Right, that's it! You," She said pointing at Bruce. "I'll see you tonight, and you," She said, kicking her feet off of the side of the bed. "Come with me."

Selina walked Pam out of the room, shutting it behind them, leaving Bruce alone. "Oh my god!" Pam gushed. "Bruce Wayne, you slut."

"What part of we did not sleep together, do you not understand."

"Oh... you prude." She said, seeming almost disappointed.

"Anyway, why are you here?" Selina asked bluntly. "You made it pretty clear last time."

"I was harsh..." Pam trailed off when she realised that she was about to apologise. "But I was right."

Selina passed her and sighed as she sat down on the couch. "I'm sorry, you were right."

Pam almost choked on her tongue. "What?" She managed to ask through her coughing fit.

"You heard it, I'm not repeating it." Pam sat down next to Selina on the couch, literally taken off of her feet. Never, in all the years that she had known Selina had she ever heard her admit that she was wrong.

"Thank you." Pam grinned, grabbing Selina's shoulders to pull her into a hug.

"To think I was going to promise never to make a decision for you again."

Pam let out a high pitched squeaking sound of joy as she aggressively rocked Selina side to side, squeezing her tightly. Selina was barely managing to hold on for the ride. After a few moments, Selina finally spoke up. "If you hug any tighter, I think my head's gonna pop."

Bruce watched as the girls parted with a laugh, leaning on the door frame of Selina's bedroom, envious of their friendship. He could never be honest with Harvey about who he truly was or he'd be shunned and while he could be honest with Alfred, it wasn't the same. Of course, Bruce loved him like he would his own father but it wasn't like talking to someone his own age. That, he figured, was why he'd grown so attached to Selina in such a short space of time. She saw him for who he was without the mask of the billionaire. Just another lonely teenager damaged by the city they all called home.

"I'm going go." Bruce said, announcing his presence and drawing the attention of the two women on the couch.

"Alright."

"So, I'll see you tonight?" Bruce asked, hopeful that she would follow through with her promise.

"Yeah, come here about nine-ish."

"It was nice to meet you Pam."

"Same." Pam muttered with a mischievous smile.

Bruce climbed out of the window, immediately noticing how strange it was that he had found the fire escape entrance normal after using it only twice. From behind he heard Pam and Selina's discussion continue.

"Details. I want them."

"There are none."

Pam scoffed.

"He's nice. He's just nice."

"And hot." Pam laughed.

"Alright, and hot." Selina agreed.

Bruce felt a smirk grow on his lips as he started heading down the fire escape.

* * *

When Pam finally headed back to the lab, an orange glow was beginning to form between the buildings. She knew that Dr Bloom wouldn't be happy that she had spent the entire day away but she didn't care. She had a good day with a friend and that was all that mattered. Upon pushing the double doors open and slipping into the lab through the open door labelled Dr. Cornelius Bloom, she found her 'boss' exactly where she'd left him yesterday, hunched over his computer, typing away loudly.

"Coffee, now."

Pam scowled and picked up his mug before noticing the empty gurney in the corner of the room. "Where's Ryan?" She asked.

Ryan was the twelve-year-old boy she had convinced to be part of Bloom's trial. "It'll be an adventure." She had told him. "You'll have a bed, new clothes and as much candy as you can eat." He had jumped at the chance, he trusted her.

"The subject failed to produced the desired response." He said, still typing away.

"He's... alright though?"

Bloom sighed in frustration. Who was she to show up ten hours late and interrupt him? "I did what we do with all failed experiments and terminated it."

Pam's whole body shuddered. He legs and arms feeling numb. She didn't realise she had even dropped the mug that she was holding until it shattered on the ground. "You murdered him!" She cried. It made her sick, just the thought of it. She had done this, murdered a child.

Ignoring her claim, Bloom continued to work. "How could you?" Pam slammed her hand into the computer monitor causing it to fall from the desk. Bloom was on his feet and grabbed her by her throat so quickly Pam didn't have the chance to scream. They were on street level in a built-up area. If she had, someone would have come running but as his hands grasped at her throat leaving her without air.

"Now, this would be murder." Pam's eyes were wide with fear beginning to become bloodshot as she clawed her fingers at his hands uselessly. "I terminated a failed experiment, didn't I?"

When she made no attempted to respond he slammed her head back into the wall before repeating himself. "Didn't I?" Pam frantically nodded her head as best she could, making small gasping noises as she desperately tried to get air into her lungs.

"Now, you're going to get me another subject or it will be you on that table next. Do you understand?" Pam nodded again as she began to feel dizzy.

With one final glare into her eyes to let her know how serious he was, Bloom finally let go of Pam and she collapsed to the floor, too weak to stand, desperately gasping at the air. Tears ran down Pam's face as she lay on the ground too terrified to move. When she finally felt brave enough to move, she placed a shaky palm onto the cold tiled floor and pushed herself into a sitting position.

Pam flinched involuntarily as Bloom spoke again. "Don't test me again girl." He warned. "You have twenty-four hours or you'll be next."


	13. Warning Signs

Bruce arrived back to Wayne manner just before lunch, swinging by city hall to collect his car beforehand, to find Leslie and Alfred in the family kitchen sharing a laugh.

"Ah, Bruce!" Leslie gasped, getting to her feet, almost spilling her teacup as she quickly placed it down. She toothy grin spread across her face as she approached him. "Alfred tells me that you have been seeing a girl."

"Not like that, she's just a friend." Bruce assures her.

With hands softly cupping Bruce's cheeks like she did when he was a child, she turned towards Alfred with an eyebrow of disbelief raised only for him to shake his head in response, sipping from the teacup he was holding between his forefinger and thumb, something he only did in front of company. It wasn't like he was ever dowdy, it was just one of the many things Bruce had picked up on over the years that he realised Alfred did to maintain the image Bruce wasn't even aware he wanted until a few years ago.

Sitting down with them, Bruce tried to deny it once more for his parental figures to share another look that told him that they didn't believe him. It wasn't like he hated the idea of people believing him to be in a relationship with Selina. She, as far as he could tell, was a good person that had to steal to get by. It was just from the few times that he had met her, he could tell that she wasn't going to be happy with it.

"Did you see the news this morning?" Alfred asked, pouring Bruce some tea without bothering to ask. Two cubes with milk, just the way he'd been taught to like it.

"No."

Alfred shares a knowing look with Leslie but before he can comment on it, the bell for the front door, hanging from the ceiling rang. It was one of those old-timey ones that were in various areas of the servant quarters due to the size of the house. As he stood up, Bruce tried to tell Alfred that he would answer it but he cut him off.

"We're entertaining company, Sir, I'll answer the door and will be back in a moment." After considering saying that it was just Leslie, Bruce reconsidered, knowing better. It wouldn't be Alfred he'd have to worry about if he'd said it.

"So, you found her and proved me wrong." Leslie said, turning her focus back to Bruce as Alfred left them alone.

"I Suppose I did."

"I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Not believing you."

"It's..."

"No, your parents, they were relying on me and Alfred to guide you." She took a moment as she expressed her regret to him, opening up her feelings to him the same way that he had on only a handful of occasions over the years when he had allowed his stoic persona to slip. "The first thing I told you was that you were wrong, I should've..."

Bruce placed his hand on hers, squeezing it reassuringly. "You didn't everything you could have. Neither of you had to do anything, you had no legal obligation, you're just good people. Besides you were doing the best you could with the facts, they found no evidence of somebody being up there so you had no reason to believe. Truth be told, I didn't believe it, not really, until I saw her again."

Leslie's smile softened as she watched the boy she and Alfred raised, their boy, reassure her that they had done right by him. Raised him to become a mature, caring young man his parents would've been proud of, that she was proud of. "I'm so proud of you." She placed her free hand onto his and squeezed it as he had done.

"So, what's she like?" Leslie asked, wiping a stray tear from her cheek.

The sound of footsteps approaching turned their attention towards the door.

"I'm sorry, Master Wayne is in a meeting. You can't just..." Bruce stood up from the table as Captain James Gordan burst through the kitchen door followed by Harvey Bulock and an enraged Alfred. "I tried to tell him."

"It's fine Alfred." Bruce said, raising a hand up to signal that he had everything under control.

His tone changed, as his mannerisms became more expressive. "Jim, I have been meaning to call you and congratulate you on your promotion."

"I got a call from Kate." Jim told him and it took everything in his being not to react.

"Katherine?"

"Yeah, she told me that you wanted information about Basil Karlo and I thought to myself, what does Bruce Wayne want with a known criminal?"

"He is one of Professor Strange's victims, I want to use my resources to help those harmed by Wayne Enterprises." Bruce smiled softly at his own quick thinking. "Even those with illegal intentions."

"Cut the bullshit..." He replied, approaching Bruce quickly, who remain completely still. Bruce's eyes narrowed as he realised how foolish he was to trust Katherine, millitary family. She went to the academy herself, only to drop out to spite her parents, he should have known she'd go to Jim.

"Jim!" Lee protested, standing in front of Bruce who remained unfazed.

"Yeah, come on..." Harvey added.

"No, I have got enough to deal with without having to worry about him on top it all." Jim turned his attention back to Bruce and it was only now that he realised how tired and broken Jim actually looked. Eyes heavy, wrinkles beginning to form in the corners. A heavy stubble covered his typically clean-shaven face, with wisps of grey seeping through.

The brewing gang war, a loose serial killer and a heavily pregnant wife weighed heavy on his mind and were having a physical effect. As much as Bruce wanted to talk to Jim, he knew that it was safer to look into his problems alone.

"Your commitment ended when I found my parents killer."

"WE found the court, together." Jim reminded him.

"I'm not talking about the court..." He snapped, realising mid-sentence that he was playing the part of ungrateful brat/philanthropist too well. A problem Alfred had been trying to solve for over a year. He'd get caught up in it and then slip up, just like he had.

"What do you mean?"

"Bruce, you in there you... dog..." Harvey Dent strolled into the room, immediately becoming uncomfortable as everybody turned towards him with a frown. "Captain, Detective, Miss Thompkins, Alfred."

"Look, Bruce..." Jim placed a hand on Bruce's shoulder as Lee stepped out of the way. "I need you to stay out of danger, don't try to find a known criminal for whatever reason you aren't telling me or we'll be having this conversation in an interrogation room."

"He masqueraded as my father, Jim." Bruce pleaded, in a feeble attempted to appeal to him on a personal level.

Jim stared at Bruce for a moment, seeing the boy he'd watched grow up without experiencing a real childhood on the cusp of adulthood, heading down the same path that he had a few years ago before finally responding.

"You wanna play detective, join the force or I'll put you in a cell." Jim turned to leave and called over his shoulder. "This is your one and only warning."

Once Jim had left Bruce sat down, allowing his eyes to shut as he let out an audible sigh. He let himself to sink into the cool leather of the chair, wanting everything and everyone around him to disappear.

"I'll take that as my cue to leave." Leslie announced as if reading his mind.

With a quick goodbye and the promise of returning on Saturday for more information about Selina, she was gone, followed by Alfred showing her to the door. Apparently, Harvey didn't get the memo, sitting across from Bruce, scraping the chair legs along the floor as he pulled it out.

"So," Harvey said, dragging out the 'O'. "What was that about?"

"It's not important." Bruce told him, not looking up from the table still irritated with himself for his slip up. There were three people he could really trust, Alfred, Leslie and Lucius. He was infatuated with Selina, he wasn't narrow-minded enough to think that that meant he could trust her and Harvey, he just talked too much and was a lot like Katherine, with his father being the DA. Even though Harvey hated what his father did to him, he still respected what he believed in.

Harvey looked at Bruce and considered making a joke but reconsidered and after a brief moment decided to change the subject. "Who was that girl last night?"

' _Shit_.' Bruce thought to himself. ' _How did he find out about Selina_.' It wasn't that he wanted to keep her a secret from Harvey, it was the questions that came with it. Where'd you meet? He could hardly say that they were both kidnapped by the same person.

"Some girl." Bruce answered, mimicking what he had heard Harvey more times than he cared to remember.

"Did you seal the deal?" He asked.

Why? Why did this have to become a big deal just because it was him and not Harvey. "No."

"Why didn't you tell me about her, is she your girlfriend?"

"No, and I met her last night." Bruce finally looking up from his hands. "You brought her up before I could." He lied.

"Sorry, I just wondered, the papers..."

"The papers?" Bruce repeated.

"Yeah, you're on the cover of all of them." Harvey lent back in his chair and stretched his arms, shaping his forefinger and thumb into 'L' shapes to simulate the corners of a magazine or newspaper. "Bruce Wayne's mystery girl."

"You're being serious."

"Yeah, I mean she's hot. could be worse."

"Great..." Bruce said, wondering how Selina was going to react to the newfound attention.

On the ride over to the precinct, Jim spent his time listing to the typical drivel from Harvey about women and what not, on the ride over, responding with nods and quiet 'yeah's' as he felt everything getting to him again, rubbing his eyes every now and again to clear his vision.

"It's the stress." The doctor told him after Barbra forced him to book an appointment. "Nothing we can do, you just need to take it easy." Heh, it was laughable. Taking it easy with his responsibilities was like telling him to stop breathing. It was just part of life, there was nothing he could do about it either.

"So, the kid? You think he'll listen?" Harvey asked.

"No, but I had to try."

"You see the paper s'morning?"

"No."

"The kid, front cover of 'em all." Harvey laughed. "Getting more action than I am."

"Speakin' a women, how's Mrs Gordan?" Jim glanced over at the stream of traffic on the other side of the road moving just as slowly as the lane he sat in and considered colliding with one of the cars just to get out of this conversation.

After deciding he couldn't deal with the paperwork, Jim finally answered. "She's six months pregnant and always at home with a four year old, Harv."

"Fair enough."

After suffering the traffic of Gotham, which seemed to only have two variations, busy and extremely busy, the old partners finally arrived at GCPD Central when the radio crackled into life. "Captain?" Detective Harper spoke with urgency.

Jim sighed, picking up the responder. He wasn't even able to get to his office. "Go ahead, detective."

"10-35 at Falcone Shipping Yard." He swallowed nervously, sharing a look with Harvey.

"10-4, we're on-route."

"Sir, we have word Maroni set it up."

Jim squeezed his eyes shut pressing his head back against the headrest of the seat as he desperately hoped she was wrong. This was the last thing he wanted to hear today because if it was true, then there was war on the streets of Gotham, and it had only just begun.


	14. Practice Makes Perfect

Five hours. All it took for the public to erupt into a panic. Three more hours for the Burnley and Old Gotham to turn into ghost towns while rioting broke out on Somerset as the GCPD focused their protection on the North and South of Gotham. With a curfew now in place, people, who weren't making the most of the thinning out police force, cowered behind curtains as they remembered the last time war erupted on the streets of Gotham, the reason why precautions had been put in place. Those brave enough to fare the streets of Gotham at night were crazy, criminals, GCPD officers manning the roadblocks and focused on riot control. It was for this reason that Bruce had to use the girders below Dini Bridge as rungs to cross Gotham River.

After passing the checkpoint on the other side of the bridge, Bruce stuck to the shadows, the suit Lucius had provided allowed him to blend in undetected and the mask Alfred had made, while not being bulletproof like the suit, kept his identity a secret, which was particularly important following Jim's declaration. Stealthily he remained undetected hiding behind parked cars and out of sightlines as he made his way to a nearby fire escape. Rooftops would be simpler, safer as he attempted to avoid confrontation at least until he had gotten to Selina's apartment.

"B," Came Alfred's voice from the built-in intercom system that he'd insisted on. If it weren't for the curfew, he'd be following Bruce in Rolls Royce instead of sitting in his father's secret study bellow Wayne Manor monitoring police scanners and security cameras. "Rioting seems to be spilling over from Somerset into The Cauldren, the quietest route to Miss Kyle's apartment appears to be West Avenue."

"Thanks, Penny." The code names were Alfred's idea, to prevent anyone from listening in, even though Lucius had them using a crypto channel.

"Don't forget about next week."

"I haven't, I know it's my last chance."

"Alright then, Sir. Penny out."

Bruce did as he was told, sticking to the rooftops making use of the magnetic grip gloves and grappling hook launcher, that Lucius had provided him with. The first time using the launcher was a learning curve. He swung to get on the building across the road to hit the wall hard, only managing to hold on thanks to his gloves. After reaching his goal, knowing the bruise the collision was going to leave across his ribs, Bruce took a moment to get his breath back. The second attempt was much more successful, as he began to swing, Bruce hit the retract button on the launcher that softened the landing and meant he only needed to climb onto the parapet to get to the roof.

After a few more attempts Bruce was beginning to grow used to the swinging, but his ribs still ached from the initial impact as he reached Selina's apartment building. Using the strap, he put the grappling hook back over his shoulder and headed five floors down the fire escape to Selina's window. It was dark, no lights on and no signs of life until he saw those green eyes through the open window but they were panicked. She lunged towards him, knife in her hand just as she in his dreams.

"Selina..." He tried to reason with her but all she heard was a deep growling voice, not Bruce how she'd be able to recognise him. She grabbed him by the collar, pulling him through the window so he fell onto his back and then straddled his chest, pressing the knife against his throat.

"Now, give me one reason why I shouldn't kill you?" She smiled sweetly, this side of her terrified Bruce.

"It's me..." She didn't budge, just narrowed her eyes. Of course, she wouldn't Bruce thought as he remembered the voice modulator. He'd thought it was a good idea to activate it after Jim's threat earlier and forgotten about it, after all, through the earpiece, he sounded like himself. "Bruce."

Bruce watched as her eyes quickly flickered down to glance at his exposed mouth and jaw, and her facial features softened. "Oh. I'm surprised you showed."

Once she had climbed off of him, Bruce stood up and took his right glove off. Lifting a tab over his left ear, he pressed his thumb against the panel beneath. The hissing of air signalled the release of his mask as it recognised his fingerprint. He placed it down carefully before Selina finally spoke again.

"What the hell are you wearing?" She laughed and Bruce was glad she found humour in it.

"I had a run-in with Jim Gordan, he warned me off looking for Clayface so I need the mask, just in case." Her smile turned sour at the mention of Gordan.

"I had a few run-in's with him when I was younger."

"Why?" Selina rolled her eyes at the question and Bruce felt stupid for asking but then again he wasn't friends with many criminals so he wasn't particularly used to it.

"Hold on," She said, ignoring his question. "That doesn't explain why you've got it."

"That's a long story. I'll tell you sometime," He swallowed nervously before continuing as he began to feel bolder. "When I cook for you."

"Maybe when the streets are, you know, slightly safer."

"Okay." He said, trying to fill the silence that followed.

"I wasn't busy today, so me and Pam asked around."

"You did?"

"He's having a meeting with two of his top guys."

"Clayface?" He asked, wanting to leave now at the chance of finding him.

"On the roof of the Grant Park Mall parking garage at midnight." Selina could see the desperation in his face before he'd even opened his mouth.

"I need to go." He told her sternly, turning away to leave, taking his mask from the side cabinet.

"No." He was being reckless and letting his emotions take over, something Selina was used to seeing in Pam. He ignored her, pressing the mask onto his face allowing it to hiss into place. "Bruce, stop!" She shouted this time and it was successful. His hand remained on the windowsill, ready to climb back out but he had stopped to listen.

"I'm coming with you." She wasn't going to let him do this alone, not when he clearly wasn't thinking straight. Whatever Clayface had done to him, he had neglected to tell her but it was clear it had affected him deeply.

"I can't let you, I won't put you in danger." Selina laughed, not chuckled as she spoke like she did when she asked him what he was wearing, she really laughed.

"Let me? Nice try!" She grabbed Bruce roughly by his shoulder to turn him towards her. "Look at me!" She placed a hand, softly on his cheek drawing him in as she spoke slowly. "I'm gonna go and grab something, and if you are gone by the time I get back, you are on your own. With no help, you'll get yourself killed because you clearly haven't got a clue what you're really doing. Do you trust me?"

Bruce nodded as he realised he was about to make the same mistake that he had made just a few weeks ago that got him caught. Without Selina, he'd likely be dead. She left him alone, heading into her bedroom.

"Master B, I couldn't help but overhear." He heard Alfred in his ear again.

"Of course you couldn't."

"I would advise you not to engage, but I know you better than that and while I still do not trust Miss Kyle I do believe that she is right to come with you."

"I know, I just don't want to put anyone else in danger, not after what happened to Karen." Even after all these years, he still felt guilty for her death at the hands of Mr Freeze. If he hadn't pressured her to come out of hiding and help him, she'd still be alive.

"From what I have seen and heard in your words, I am certain that she is capable of taking care of herself just as well as you are." Alfred assured him.

"I know but..."

"Who are you talking to?" Selina asked, confused as she walked out of her bedroom. She was wearing a tight black bodysuit, with a zip running down the front, matching gloves, with sharp claws attached, and the eye mask with the cat ears she had been given when she was a child after she earned the nickname cat burglar. Bruce looked her up and down, mouth agape.

"What are you wearing?"

She shrugged her shoulders, this is what she always wore on a night job that didn't require mingling access. "You got a mask, I got a mask."

* * *

Arriving at the car park, Bruce felt nervous like he never had before. He was second-guessing and doubting himself as he considered the fact that he was about to get the answers that he had been looking for. Maybe it was just a scam, perhaps Clayface impersonating his father had nothing to do with Ra's Al Ghul. That scared him the most because if it hadn't been him behind it this was another of Gotham's criminals targeting his loved ones, both alive and deceased just because of his name.

What Bruce hadn't considered was that if Ra's had orchestrated this charade then he could do nothing but wait for the next piece of the puzzle to fit into place and for Ra's to come for him. There was no trail, Ra's left nothing behind and nothing unplanned, Bruce had tried to find him for over a year, searching for anything only to find legends of him being immortal. Stories throughout history of him leading the rise and fall of nations but no indication of who or what he really was.

When he reached the roof and Bruce had a face to focus on his nerves dissipated. Following the plan he and Selina had come up with on the journey over, Bruce silently stalked across the rooftop hiding behind cars abandoned by panicked shoppers fearing for their lives as they believe running home to hide from the gang war would be quicker than trying to drive through the traffic. He glanced up to see two men approaching the only car with its headlights on. Through the window of a car Bruce got his first glimpse of Clayface as he stepped out of his car before ducking down behind a car just a few spaces away from them, close enough to them to hear their conversation, mere meters away from the man he had spent months searching for. He looked sickly, weak. Nothing like Bruce remembered.

"The demon says you've done good, you're off the hook."

' _The Demons Head._ ' It was all but confirmed for Bruce that if 'the demon' was sending his lackeys to check up on Clayface, he was behind it. "Does that mean the taxes are going to be reduced?"

"No, you have to work harder than this for that to happen."

Both of his associates chuckled derisively. Bruce sat with his back against the car as they discussed business plans for the illegal botox that Clayface was selling out of back street stores. It was fifteen minutes before the subject turned to his health. "Do you have it?" He pleaded.

"Now, now. Patience is a virtue."

"I need it, I'm not myself..."

"Get on your knees." The men told him and Bruce assumed he obliged.

"Please, I'm begging you! If I miss another dosage, I fear what will become of me."

"Alright," The man threw Clayface a vile of green liquid. "Don't say the boss doesn't do anything for you."

"Thank you." Bruce heard Clayface repeat over and over again as the men's footsteps faded away. It wasn't until he heard the door to their stairwell shut that Bruce decided to approach him.

Still crouched down, he made his way around the left side of the car, stopping in front of Clayface's car. Peeking around the hood confirmed Bruce's suspicion that he had not moved, he was hunched over with his back to Bruce so he decided to use this to his advantage. He brought the grapple launcher around his front and approached Clayface pressing the barrel against his head.

"Make a sound and I'll pull the trigger." He complied.

"You work for Ra's Al Ghul."

"Do not speak his name." He told Bruce in a hushed tone as if someone was listening in.

"Where are you selling his product from?"

"Warehouses, on the dock. Clients come in, pay in cash and we treat them." He was willing to spill secrets with ease but didn't want him to say Ra's name. It was weird.

"What's in your hand?"

"No!" Clayface tried to duck down but Bruce kicked him, knocking him onto his face. He rolled onto his back, face deformed from the impact. His nose flat against his face and his jaw crooked. "Why?"

"It heals me, please! Don't..." Bruce got a look at the vile and recognised it almost immediately. The Lazarus Waters.

"Why did you target Bruce Wayne?"

"Wayne?"

"Wayne! Tell me about him." Bruce said, moving closer. "Or I'll destroy that." He gestured towards his hand.

"He wanted me to get him onside. I screwed up, that's why I look like this. That's all I know! I swear!" Seeing the fear in his eyes is what made Bruce believe him, over the years he had learned that people tend to tell the truth when they think they're going to die. It didn't please him to do it, it was what was necessary. After a quick glance towards the stairwell door, Bruce lowered the 'gun'. Selina should be here by now and he had what he needed.

"I believe you."

Selina was stood, two floors below alone and waiting for the two men to come through the door to ensure that they didn't interrupt Bruce but they still hadn't shown. There was nothing. Going out into the stairwell, Selina found it empty but through the silence, she noticed the smallest, most insignificant sound, a dripping. It was coming from the floor above so cautiously she began to make the ascent.

Crossing onto the next set of steps from the mid-floor landing, she noticed the thick, viscous, crimson liquid running down the steps, dripping off of the lip of one before puddling onto the next as an irony smell hung in the air. She reached the source on the landing, finding the two men that Clayface was supposed to meet hacked to death. Even though she had seen dead bodies before, it made her feel sick to her stomach. This was an awful way to die, for anyone but how didn't she hear it? It reminded her of Dexter, cloth in his mouth to muffle his screams. The way his eyes were glazed over, still open.

Taking a deep breath in, she pushed away the memories and headed up to the roof, two steps at a time. She had to find Bruce. Bursting out onto the top floor of the parking garage, unknowingly she ran over to Clayface's car, the only one with its headlights on, where she found a smashed test tube with the Lazurus Water spilt onto the ground and Bruce's grappling hook launcher just discarded on the floor.

"Shit."

* * *

This first thing Bruce notice was the dripping and hissing of water pipes. He was underground. Feet shuffled around him, but only one set. Metal instruments clattered on a medical tray. Rope tying his arms to a wooden chair stopped him from being able to move them but his mask was still on. The chair was old, the musty, earthy smell that was rot hung in the air, that would be useful, it wouldn't take much pressure to break.

"Ah, you're awake." A man snorted. His voice was soft with a harsh edge. "Come looking for the monster and found something better." He muttered under his breath.

Bruce opened his eyes to come face to face with something he'd hardly thought about since he had gone to see Katherine. "You won't need to worry about what's under that mask when we're done."

Nose to snout, Bruce could see his smile in his eyes, even behind the porcelain mask. "You'll be..." He raised his arms out as a showman would. "...Perfect. Oink! Onik!"

Professor Pyg, as he had ensured the media called him, laughed through his nose in a sort of throaty snort to mimic what he was masquerading as. Bruce looked forwards sternly as the Pyg began examining the tools he had in the medical tray. "It really is lovely, your security gave me quite the shock," He laughed at himself, thinking back to the electrical shock he got from trying to remove it from Bruce's face without his fingerprint. "But the pain is the beginning of the path to perfection."

Bruce slowed his breathing down, just like avoiding looking at him as he examined his tools, he wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing him scared. "Now," He picked up the power saw and it roared into life. "Don't struggle, Pyg wouldn't want to damage that exquisite jawline."

As the Pyg tried to run his gloved finger along the much younger man's jaw, Bruce took a chance. Kicking off of the Pyg's stomach with both feet, he knocked him to the floor, winded, while his chair tipped back and shattered under his weight. Bruce groaned, remembering his bruised ribs, as he rolled off of the broken wood, pushing himself to his knees, then his feet with the arms of the chair still tied to his forearms. He noticed the door to the exit, only metres away, he could leave now, just run but he knew that he would never be able to forgive himself if he didn't try to stop this monster.

The Pyg, it appeared recovered just as quickly lunging toward Bruce with the saw whirring. Lifting his arm, Bruce blocked the saw with the chair arm, using his free right hand to punch his opponent in the face. He stumbled back, feeling the crack Bruce had made on his mask.

"No! Pyg will fix you!" He cried, lunging again. Bruce repeated his action, blocking the saw as the Pyg pushed down harder this time, making quick work of the wood protecting his arm. It tore through his sleeve quickly, it was only made to protect from indirect shots. Once it made contact with his skin, Bruce saw red and struck the Pyg hard in the face with the chair arm smashing the mask over his right eye, whilst kicking his legs out from underneath him as he used the larger man's weight against him. The power saw, slid away, shuddering to a stop.

On the ground, the Pyg realised what Bruce had done and quickly turned away as he clutched at his face trying to cover his exposed skin up with his hands. "Stop!" He begged. "Please..." The like his voice the act broke and he was just another scared little man trying to make a name for himself, like many before him.

"You've been busy." Bruce heard Selina's voice from behind him as the Pyg now was hunched over, loudly sobbing.

"Could've used your help."

"You handled yourself." She said, now stood next to him with her arms folded, still carrying the grapple hook launcher on her back and wearing her cat mask which even in this situation, Bruce had to admit was growing on him.

"How's the arm?"

"Not deep, it'll be fine."

"Who's the guy?"

"Pyg!" Bruce was beaten to the answer by the man himself.

"Selfish, Ungrateful, Piggies!" He muttered to himself, reaching for a knife that had fallen when Bruce knocked over his chair. He spun around, once again using his heavy frame to his advantage in an attempt to deliver a more powerful blow which resulted in him colliding with Selina's boot.

"Always check the hands." She informed Bruce as the Pyg fell slumped at their feet and she began walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"You got the info from the other nut, yeah?"

"So? We aren't leaving him here!" Bruce protested.

"What'd you suggest, bring him back to your place and have Alan make him tea?"

"Alfred."

"Whatever!"

"The GCPD is a couple of blocks away."

"You're kidding me!" She exclaimed, throwing her arms in defeat before letting them slap down loudly against her sides.

"I'm doing it with or without you."

Selina wanted to scream, he may have been a psycho but he wasn't worth her time. Taking a deep breath in through her nose and out through her mouth, Selina decided to humour Bruce and his self-righteousness. "Throw me some'a that rope."

Bruce disposed of the saw with his blood on before both he and Selina carried the Pyg out. Within a block, he woke up and they forced him to walk. Deciding all had left to do was sing, he did just that, singing what Bruce recognised as ' _Con Te Partirò_ '. It was when they got to the GCPD headquarters that he became more difficult, struggling so much that Bruce had to hold him down while Selina tied the rope around his waist against one of the concrete pillars to prevent him from running away.

"Penny, come in." Bruce said as he and Selina left the Pyg screaming outside of the GCPD.

"I need you to make an anonymous call to the GCPD to make sure that they find the surprise we left for them if they haven't already."

"You got him?"

"I got what I needed to know but not him."

"What are they going to find?" Alfred asked curiously.

"The Pyg."

"My lord! Are you and Miss Kyle alright."

"Few cuts and bruises, we'll be fine." He assured him, sharing a small smile with Selina as they walked down the middle of the empty street shoulder to shoulder.

"I'll see you in a few hours."

"In a few hours, sir. I'll be waiting, Penny Out."

"B Out."

After a few moments of silence and realising that there was no way that he was going to take the lead, Selina took Bruce's hand in her's. "Come on."

"Where?" Bruce asked, mindlessly following her.

"Up, I want to show you my favourite spot."


	15. Help The People

_Earlier That Evening..._

With her mind ravaged with guilt, left in a state of ruin, Pam desperately fought against her inner voice, but it was pointless, after all, it was right.

" _You're Worthless! You're Weak! You should be dead, not him!_ "

Selina was right. She had told her to get away from Bloom before it was too late but Pam being Pam thought she had it under control. She thought she was going to help people. She didn't need the credit; she just needed the knowledge that she had done something to make the world a better place. Now, Pam knew that she had failed. She convinced Ryan to participate in Bloom's trial, of her medication. She may as well have killed him herself.

Without purposes, she wandered the desolate streets, hoping that she might wake up from this nightmare, but it never happened.

' _Selina's gonna know what to do_.' She eventually thought to herself. She couldn't turn back the clock, but she could stop Bloom from hurting anybody else. It was all she could do. Selina would help, she knew she would.

Just hearing her voice would make Pam crumble. Selina would hate her, just like she hated herself. ' _Child killer!_ '

"Pam?" Selina gasped, surprised to see her friend so soon after they parted ways earlier in the day. Pam swallowed roughly; she had come all this way, but now she was here she couldn't find the words. The truth is, she had no idea what she was going to say, what could she say? Her feet just seemed to carry her here.

"What happened?"

Selina sat with Pam as she recounted what had happened over the past few weeks, clutching her hand for comfort without interruption or judgement. "I don't know what to do."

Selina stared for a moment, mouth agape, still shocked at what she had heard before her eyebrows furrowed and her expression turned to a frown. Suddenly, Selina sprung to her feet and began pacing in front of the couch, eyes now clutched shut in frustration. "Why didn't I see, it was right in front of my face." She muttered.

"This..." Pam tried to hold back a sob. "It's all my fault."

Selina's head whipped in Pam's direction. "No!" She scolded before sitting down next to her friend and putting her arm over her shoulder. Leaning in so her forehead was resting on Pam's, Selina spoke softly. "None of this is your fault. You didn't do anything wrong; this was all him."

Pam had expected an ' _I told you so_ ' but Selina knew better. She knew the guilt that came with being responsible for the death of somebody innocent. She had felt it only twice before, but it still stung as though it happened only yesterday. Bruce's parents and Dexter. She was where Pam is now, and she'd help her get through it just like Pam helped her. It was her turn and she could only keep her safe while she went through the motions, just like she was doing now. Holding her, letting her know that she isn't to blame with the hope that she might begin to believe it one day.

"I have to stop him." Pam told her, trying to get up.

"No, not tonight."

"Selina..."

"You need to sleep."

"No! I need to..." She tried to struggle as Selina held a tight grip over her shoulders.

"You need to sleep! Tomorrow, when he expects you back you'll take me."

"Then what?"

"Then?" Selina was deadly serious as she looked into Pam's eyes. "I'll kill him."

Staring back at Selina, she swallowed nervously. She believed her, but Pam couldn't let her. Tonight, after Selina left with Bruce, she'd leave. She'd deal with Bloom. This mess, she created it and she had to show Selina that she was capable of cleaning it up herself. Most of all she needed to make him understand what Ryan must have felt. All that trust he'd put in her and how quickly Bloom took it away. She needed to make sure that what happened to Ryan never happened again, whatever the cost.

* * *

"Why here?" Bruce asked as they reached the top of the channel nine news building. Selina ignored him, just walking over to the edge of the building, looking out at the city below. He joined her trying to see what she did.

"It's beautiful." She began. "The calmness. You can't see the cracks from up here, Gotham just looks..."

"Normal." Bruce felt the corners of his lips curve up slightly. He'd never thought about it that way but she was right. Gotham was far from normal but from up here, the concrete canopy lacked the craziness the seeped in from the roots of the city. She took a step up onto the waist-high parapet and Bruce involuntarily stepped forward, arms raised as if to catch her. He felt stupid immediately and allowed his arms to drop back to his sides, what did he think she was going to do, jump?

"It's sunrise," Selina told him, pointing out past the buildings, towards the docks. "Watching it over the water."

Bruce was surprised. He didn't take Selina for somebody who'd appreciated the little things in life, but she had surprised him ever since he saw her that night in Mrs Kane's bedroom stealing her necklace so he shouldn't have underestimated her. After all, she was a woman reared by the city, of course, she'd appreciate it's beauty.

It wasn't until Bruce joined her on the parapet that she spoke again. "I've never brought anyone else up here."

He was cautious, as he noticed the vertical drop, only now appreciating that they were on the tallest building in Gotham. Selina noticed this and felt a small smile tug at the corners of her mouth. "Why me then?" He asked, not realising how bitter it sounded.

"You let me in, I guess..." She said, turning her gaze back towards him so they were now facing each other, oblivious to the fact that they were over one thousand feet from the ground, standing on the edge of the abyss that with one wrong move could claim their lives. "I thought I'd return the favour."

"Really?" Bruce took a step closer.

"Mhmm." She mimicked his next step so they were almost nose to nose. It was only now that Selina noticed his eyes; they were an honest blue. His expression was pleasant, with a glint of wistfulness.

"You know, sunrise is still a few hours away."

"Is it?" Selina smirked as their foreheads touched. Her curls tickled his cheeks but he ignored it. "I guess we'll have to find something to do to pass the time."

Bruce's eyes flickered down to her lips before he leaned down, as their noses brushed past one another he could feel her warm breath against his skin.

"Master B," Bruce froze.

"I thought I'd switched this off."

Selina pulled away, her brows returning to the furrowed state that they tended to be in while she was with Bruce.

"'Fraid not, it's built into the suit, not the mask."

"Of course, it is Penny." Bruce said, rolling his eyes in frustration.

Blinking in confusion, Selina said aloud. "The Butler?" With a sigh, she jumped down back onto the roof without a sound.

"This better be important." Bruce followed Selina down off of the ledge, less gracefully.

"Why Master B, I hope I wasn't interrupting something!"

Bruce scowled at his snarky attitude, and Alfred could feel it even as he sat miles away in the cave under the study, but he wasn't in the mood.

Selina, on the other hand, was bored. She took her phone out from the pocket inside of her right boot. It had been safely tucked against her calf since she left. Turning it on she checked her messages, surprised to find a text from Mouse and a voice message from Pam.

"There was an explosion."

"An explosion, where?"

"What?" Selina asked.

"Wayne lab, at the university." Alfred told him.

"A lab at the university." Bruce relayed to Selina. She felt a chill across her whole body. ' _That's were Bloom's lab is._ ' She thought to herself as she stared at the voice message. _21:35 – Pam_. Not long after she'd left with Bruce.

"Was anybody injured?"

"Not so far but there are still people missing." Alfred took a breath. "That's not the worrying part."

"If I can interrupt," Bruce recognised Lucius' voice through the receiver. "the fire went out on its own."

Selina pushed the button and put the phone to her ear. This wasn't a coincidence, she knew it, but she had to know for certain.

" _Before you start, listen to me. You've probably already know what I've done but it's done. I know you told me to wait but…_ " Pam said.

"How is that possible?" Bruce asked.

"It's not, the alarms didn't sound, the sprinklers didn't activate. It is almost like all of the oxygen in that area was used up."

"By what?"

" _I have to be the one that stops him from hurting anyone else. He is my problem and you were right I should've stopped working with him, but I wanted to do something to help people instead of the shit that we were doing to get by when we were kids._ "

"I would assume it has something to do with the new plant growth, emanating from the horticulture labs."

"Fox, you aren't making any sense."

"The horticulture labs were next to Cornelius' lab and he was researching how accelerated cell growth could be used to help fight viruses and we believe that he was successful, hence the accelerated growth."

" _I'm gonna destroy the research then find him. I'm gonna show you that I can fix this on my own for once and you're probably gonna bitch about it, but I'll make you proud, its all I've ever wanted to do._ "

Selina felt her knees go weak. This wasn't a message of her saying what she was going to do, this was a goodbye. The moment it ended, Selina pressed the re-dial button and waited. "Come on, come on…" She muttered under her breath as it rang out.

"What can I do?"

"I will have prepared a speech for you to give to the press in the next few hours, so you will need to come to the tower now. Penny tells me that you are in the city."

"Of course…"

"NO!" Selina threw her phone, shattering it against the ground, gaining Bruce's attention.

"Selina?"

"She's there, I told her to wait." Selina paced for a moment, three to the left, and then three back to her original position as her eyes beginning to well up. After watching her for a moment Bruce stopped her, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Who's there?"

"Pam, she… She went to the lab to stop him. I told her to wait Bruce!"

"What do you mean, the explosion was her?"

"I don't know but she's there and, and I need to get her." Selina tried to push past him, but Bruce held her in place.

"Calm down." He told her softly, just as she had told him, and she listened, taking a deep breath in before letting it out.

"Please…" She found herself saying. "I need you to help me." She never asked for help, but this was Pam. She was good, unlike Selina.

"Mr Wayne, this is inadvisable at this time." Lucius told him, breaking his own communications protocol.

"B, this is dangerous. That building is surrounded by…" Bruce pulled the hood of the suit down, cutting Alfred off as Bruce didn't want to listen to him tell him that he couldn't do something again.

Bruce just nodded a yes to Selina's request and they headed for the stairwell. He knew that it was wrong of him to go after a lead on Clayface alone, but this wasn't about him. He was doing this to help people, not just Selina's friend, Alfred himself had said people weren't accounted for and that was Bruce's responsibility. They needed help and he was in a position to give it so that is what he was going to do. Alfred would understand and he hoped that his parents would have been proud.


	16. Okay

_My destruction_

 _was my rebirth_

 _and I owe you so much of that._

 **Merci** \- **Joshua Van Leader**

Harvey Dent stared nervously out at his father's driveway, holding the crimson curtain in his right hand and he looked out there for the tenth time of the evening, looking into the void imagining what could come out to hurt him with the news playing loudly in the background, talking about the rioting in Somerset as it had been since he switched it on. He was only distracted by his father's palm slapping him in the back of the head. Colliding with the window, Harvey groaned quietly, careful not to get a second one.

"Stop staring out of the fucking window." District Attorney Dent told his son coldly.

"Yes, sir." He let the drape drop, concealing the darkness again.

"There's nothing out there, I'm in the best of both worlds boy!" He laughed, taking a sip of his whiskey Harvey had been told to pour him not five minutes ago. "You know that besides Harrison's men will catch anything else, like the monsters under your bed." He laughed again as he mocked his son's fear of the dark callously.

Harvey took the abuse like he always did and didn't push back but he was reminded of thoughts he knew that he shouldn't have. Nights after his father was particularly cruel, he would lay awake and wish that tomorrow would be the day that his would father pissed off the wrong person and out of the darkness, somebody would come and free him from his life. It wasn't something that he thought of often but it was his only way out.

He could remember the day that he stood up for himself with a push from Bruce and told his father that he would tell somebody. "I'm the best DA Gotham has seen. Nobody would believe you." He told a ten-year-old Harvey. "One call to Jeremiah and you'd be locked up in Arkham with all the other crazy people." Even to this day, Harvey wondered whether Arkham would be better than enduring another day of this but every day he told himself that it was his fault. He had made his father do it.

So Harvey would apologize, move on and try not to repeat his mistake. It was his father, he knew best. But lately, it had been so much worse to the point that even Bruce was beginning to notice again and while he didn't bring it up because Harvey had told him not to after they had discussed it, it was the fact that Harvey could see in his face that he knew. Bruce was a true friend that respected his decisions even if he didn't agree with them but he couldn't hide the way he felt about what Harvey was going through, just from his facial expressions, Harvey could tell.

He was sure that it had stemmed from him telling his father that he wanted to go to law school, with aspirations to be a DA like him. "This is my legacy!" He boomed, eyes filled with rage. "I'm not just gonna let you come in here and steal it from me!"

"I wasn't trying to..."

"Don't lie to me!" That was the first time that his father had hit him more than once, he'd punched and kicked as Harvey had tried to get away, only stopping when he had stopped trying to escape. It was becoming a more frequent occurrence since that day, but so had thoughts about his father's death and not just by some assassins hand because he'd rubbed one of Gotham's mob bosses the wrong way but also by his own hand. Dreams about how easy it would be to sneak into his room or office and just end it all. They terrified him more than the dark, more than his father because this was no longer just passing thoughts, they were situations he was acting out in his head. Pushing back didn't make a difference. That small, nagging voice in the back of his head was still there, telling him, "Do it.".

* * *

They could smell it before they could see it. The moist, earthy smell, like fresh soil or compost. It hung in the air blocks away and only grew stronger as they approached. A sizable crowd watched the entrance of the laboratory on tenterhooks as they waited for something interesting to happen following the rapid plant growth on the west side of the building. Most of them were students, still in pyjama's having been evacuated from the nearby dorms, now stood behind Detective Harvey Bullock's cordon as he tried to control them with the five officers he had available due to the rioting while two ambulances and a fire engine arrived. Bullock wished that everything hadn't gone down today, he wasn't a leader, how was he supposed to deal with this? Jim would know what to do.

Bruce and Selina used this to their advantage and just pushed through the police tape to get into the dormitory next door to the lab, heading straight to the roof. Crossing over to Wayne Labs was a small jump, those below were too focused on the entrance to care about what they were doing on the roof. The fire door was a struggle with Bruce having to use the grappling launcher to help force it open.

Once they were in, Bruce followed Selina nervously as she took two steps at a time to get to down. As they exited onto the ground floor they were expecting anything except what they found. Lights hung from the ceiling by wires, flickering the corridor in and out of darkness and the tiles which were once above lay smashed across the ground littering it with debris. Looking up Bruce saw that vines had grown in the crawl space pushing everything out of the way for at least the length of this corridor. Two bodies laid on the ground, motionless, one against the wall and another strawn across the grey vinyl floor. It was apocalyptic looking, like something you would see in a film like The Day of the Triffids. Selina brushed on past them, stepping over the person that blocked her path. She stopped, spinning around when she felt Bruce grab her arm.

"What are you doing?" His voice was much gruffer and harsh with his mask back on and the voice modulator altering his tone and pitch.

"Going to find Pam!" She told him incredulously, trying to tug her arm back.

"These people need our help."

"And Pam doesn't?"

"She might not even be here, you said it yourself."

"What if she is? I waste my time with these people and..."

"There are more people that need our help, and we can give it, so help me or I'll catch you up." He ordered, letting go of her arm.

"Okay." Selina continued moving down the corridor and turning right, following the vines in the ceiling which were now spread to the walls, all grown over each other leaving very little of them exposed while Bruce dragged the two female doctors into the stairwell. It made Selina nervous, the vines had no leaves and they had managed to almost completely cover the walls and it was how it had happened that worried.

Selina froze when she noticed something, between the vines. Fingers. Human fingers poking out. She took a step back from where she had stopped and noticed that there was more than one person. Five men, all wearing lab coats, crushed by the vines, their exposed skin had turned a rosy-purple colour and the vines had grown inside of their mouths and eyes. On two of them, they'd pushed through the skin and that was when Selina saw him.

Dr Bloom, an extra body she hadn't noticed. The look of his face was one of terror. His eyes moved, darting back and forth rapidly in panic. He'd been crushed but not to death. The plants had pierced his skin, growing underneath, and he was clearly in pain but he made no sound. He didn't plead for help or beg for mercy, he may as well have been dead and as much as Selina thought about how awful this would be, she couldn't help but think about what he had done to Pam and the kid, Ryan, that Pam had told her about. ' _At least something good came out of this_.'

"My god!" She heard Bruce exclaim, alerting her to his presence. He looked on in disgust just like Selina.

After one last look at Bloom, Selina pushed Bruce along before he could see that he was still alive. "Come on, there's nothing we can do. They're all dead."

As they reached the west side of the building, the plant life became more varied. The vines were still prominent but they covered the ground like a carpet while ivy's and mosses covered the ceiling and walls with flowers not custom to Gotham or even the United States, grew through the gaps bringing in more colour and making the corridor look more like a jungle than a laboratory.

"Selina..."

"What?!" She was angry, she knew that Bloom's lab was here somewhere, but the plants had covered any indication of where exactly they were and after seeing what the plants had done to those people, Selina hoped she was right and that Pam wasn't here.

"Listen."

"Bruce I need to find Pam, I'm not..." She heard it. Sobbing. It was muffled and quiet but it was there.

"Pam!" She called out.

"Selina?" A raspy voice replied. Selina felt her cheeks lift involuntarily as she recognised Pam's voice. She ran ahead and three doors down she found her, but her smile dropped. Sitting on her feet in the middle of what once was a lab but now every surface was covered plant life, Pam almost blended in. Her skin now carrying a green hue, her hair seeming to be impossibly redder. Mouth agape, Selina just stared at her for a moment, running through all of the possible things that she thought could have happened and not wanting to believe her eyes.

"How are you alive?" Selina asked, stepping towards her cautiously.

"No!" Pam cried throwing herself back, desperately scratching at the vines to pull herself away from her friend.

Selina stopped where she was. "Don't come near me!"

"Pam?"

"I don't want to hurt you, Selina! They want to hurt you!"

"Who wants to hurt me?"

"The plants!" Selina was dumbfounded. "They're screaming!"

"What do you mean? What happened?" Selina asked softly, crouching down to Pam's level, where she noticed her bright green eyes, almost glowing in the lowly lit room. It wouldn't have been something she'd typically pick up on but earlier this evening they were blue.

"I tried to destroy all of it and then I woke up." Her head twitched like she was trying to shake a thought away or confused. "He tried to help me and touched my arm then they just grew and got louder in my head."

Where Pam had been sat when Selina walked in there was a small bulge under the vines. Another body, the man she was talking about. "You're not making sense." Selina tried to take another step closer but Pam protested again.

"If you touch me I'll kill you!" She let out a loud sob as she covered her face with her hands. "I don't know what's happening to me, Selina."

Taking another step forward, Selina reassured her, still unsure what to believe. "We can get you help, you just have to come with us."

"Us?" As Bruce tried to step into the room, the tickle he had felt on the back of his neck in the corridor persisted. He tried to itch it but his hand came into contact with one of the vines. It grew before he could react. Selina turned to see the vines wrapping tightly around his neck so he hung in the doorway, choking.

"If you can talk to these plants, do something!"

"I can't..."

Selina jumped to her feet, hopping as she reached for the knife in her boot.

"No! Selina don't, please!" Pam begged as she hacked at the vine. "Argh!" Two more and she was through it and Bruce was on his hands and knees sucking in lung fulls of air while Pam writhed around in agony where she was sat.

"Don't hurt any more of them!" Pam told them, still clutching her stomach in pain. "They want to... kill you! Go!"

"I'm not leaving you here!" Selina shouted.

"You need to..."

"Hard luck, you're stuck with me, now get up." She barked before turning to Bruce again who had managed to compose himself. "You need to go, I've got this."

"But I..."

"I'm gonna take her out front, then I can get her help."

Bruce glanced over Selina's shoulder towards Pam uneasy as he noticed her new appearance. "Alright, just be careful."

Bruce backed up out of the door, not taking his gaze off of her until he had to walk away and Selina turned her attention back to Pam. "Let's go."

Opening the double doors at the entrance, Selina was met with four police officers and Detective Bullock as pointing their guns at her. "I need help, my friends sick."

Pam followed her out cautiously, all of the lights from the cars and lampposts making her dizzy so she shielded her eyes with her right hand while still clutching her stomach with the other. The crowd which had grown since Bruce and Selina entered the building were talking loudly amongst themselves about Pam's shocking skin tone. She stumbled and an approaching paramedic, carrying a foil blanket reached out to steady her.

One fingertip brushing across her exposed shoulder was all it took. The toxin she now carried on her skin was passed onto him. He fell to the ground before Pam had even realised what had happened. Convulsing, as small plants took root in his lungs and around any other orifices, asphyxiation was slow almost seven minutes but the plants didn't need that long, pushing through the concrete vines wrapped around his body, snapping bones as they pulled him down, crushing him.

"Everyone..." Detective Bulock began, raising both of his arms in the air, trying to keep control of the situation before it collapsed into a panic.

Civilians, three news crews and emergency services watched on, some paralysed in fear while others leaned in to watch. But that was all it took, the fear. One officer, a rookie, fresh out of the academy, scared. A twitch of the finger and he pulled the trigger. The gunshot cracked in the air as loud as thunder, echoing off of the surrounding buildings and all eyes were on him, all but one pair.

"Selina?" She watched in horror as Pam called for her, looking down to see the blood soaking into her friend's shirt, radiating outwards and then she fell. Hitting the ground hard, Pam rolled onto her back taking in shallow breaths. Selina followed her down, collapsing to her knees.

"Don't..." Pam warned as Selina tried to press her hands on the wound. "Touch me!"

It was becoming harder to breathe as her left lung began to react to the pressure change and collapsed. Selina had tried to get her help, she wasn't going to let her die for her, even if it meant that she wouldn't make it.

"I have too." The tears burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down Selina's face, the muscles of her chin trembled like a small child as she realised that there was nothing that she could do.

"No!" Pam coughed. She could taste blood in her mouth but forced a smile. "This. Is my. Mess."

So Selina sat next to her best friend, unable to do anything but watch her die. Her worst fear. She couldn't even hold Pam's hand, so she did the next best thing and leaned over her, careful not to touch her, her left hand on the ground next to Pam's head. "Hey, look at me." Pam's unfamiliar green eyes locked with Selina's.

"Why couldn't you just have waited?" Pam felt Selina's tears drip onto her face as she tried to answer, only managing a gargle as the metallic sting filled her throat and she began to see white.

She coughed again, spitting blood into the air and Selina lunged back, now sitting on her feet further away. There wasn't long and they both knew it but Selina had so much more to say. "I love you."

Three words that she had never said before but they carried everything that Selina wanted to say.

"I... I..." Through glassy eyes, Pam tried to reciprocate.

"I know Pam." Selina told her, squeezing her eyes shut. She couldn't do this, she couldn't watch her die. She tilted her head down and let out a cry of frustration. "I'm sorry."

Everything stopped. Pam was silent. Selina opened her eyes. Pam's chest was still, her eyes open glazed over by tears that would never fall. She was gone. Selina's face fell into her hands as she sobbed. She felt sick. It wasn't supposed to be like this. She was supposed to get Pam out, just like Mouse had told her to. They should be in Metropolis or Central City, somewhere nice with regular jobs, sharing an apartment, not here. Not now. No matter how much she wished, she was stuck in this nightmare.

Everyone carried on like it was normal, the crowd now producing a low murmur as people tried to get photographs and the news crews tried to get a good shot. As far as they were concerned, the interesting part was over.

"A sick young woman shot dead at the scene..." A news reporter said.

"Get rid of these kids." Bullock told his men.

"What about the girl?" An officer asked.

"Leave her, let's get rid of this crowd first, ay?"

One voice. Closer than the others drew Selina's attention. While she listened, she moved her hand towards her boot. "I'm... sorry, about your friend. I didn't mean to..." Selina felt his hand touch her shoulder. She struck, spinning on the spot, kicking his legs out from under him before. By the time Officer Dawes hit the ground he felt the cool blade of Selina's knife touching his throat. There was a loud gasp from the crowd behind the barrier.

"SHE'S GOT A KNIFE!" Somebody shouted, gaining the attention of Detective Bullock.

"Don't Fire! Nobody Fire!" He raised his arms again, palms out.

' _Like it worked before._ ' Bullock joked in his head before internally scolding himself for his sick sense of humour. He didn't want another dead girl on his watch, especially not by his officer's hands. He'd talk her down, he's done it before.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't cut you open?" Selina spat, her breathing became heavier as she felt her blood boil just looking at him.

"Don't do that." Bullock requested softly, taking a step forward. "He's a good man." He took another step.

"He killed her!" Selina didn't take her eyes off of the man beneath her.

"I didn't mean..."

"Shut up Dawes." Bullock ordered before turning his attention back to Selina. "He was scared, we were all scared." Another step.

"Come any closer and I'll kill him." She told him, pressing down slightly harder.

"Your friend, she work in there?"

"What does it matter?"

"I'm just asking." He raised his hands in defence, even though she wasn't looking at him.

"Yes."

"Then she wanted to help people, didn't she?" Selina nodded, thinking about the message she had left her. Pam did this to help people, to make her proud. "She wouldn't want you to kill a man for a mistake?"

Of course, she wouldn't but that didn't stop Selina from wanting to. "You're a good person."

"You don't know what I've done!"

"I know you don't want to do this. You don't want to kill him for making a mistake."

"I do..." She told him through gritted teeth after turning her gaze back to Officer Dawes. He didn't want to die. He was terrified.

"You haven't made a mistake before?" Bullock asked, trying to appeal to her, get her to understand that she was making a mistake at that moment. Selina thought back to that day in The Shamrock, what would have happened if she hadn't knocked over that jar. Dexter would still be alive. If she had stayed with Pam, instead of chasing Bruce. Worrying about Bruce. She'd still be alive.

She was going to kill him not because she believed he deserved it, after all, she deserved to be dead ten times over, it was because she was selfish. This would make her feel better, even if it was for just the moment, just like leaving Bloom dying had. Bullock was wrong, Selina wasn't a good person, but that didn't make her a bad person. She just wanted to be okay and killing him would do that. It would make her okay for now and that was all that mattered to her.

Ready to kill, Selina was distracted by a rumbling sound beneath her. The ground began to shake as if there was an earthquake and Selina was thrown off of Officer Dawes as the concrete crumbled beneath them. Dazed and without her knife, Selina just lay on her back, ignoring the cut on her forehead, staring up at the night sky. The screams from the crowd ceased when the shaking did and Selina realised why as she pushed herself up into a sitting position.

Where Pam's body had laid, there was now a large plant like pod. It was maturing before their eyes, growing and changing colour before finally opening to reveal a pink amaryllis, the size of a car. ' _Pam's favourite._ ' Was all Selina could think as she watched in awe, just like the crowd which was growing by the second. Normal people ran from crime scenes, not in Gotham apparently.

There was no time to question where it had come from or where Pam had gone, snapping back to reality, Selina noticed the growing police presence thanks to the sound of sirens in the distance and scrambled to her feet and under the police tape that was all that stood between her and the crowd.

She just made it through before they noticed she was gone, now distracted by what to make of the giant flower. As Selina stood, now a block away with the sounds of the crowd muffled. No matter how devastated she felt, she couldn't help that believe after what she saw and Pam said in the lab, how the plants had grown because of her that she had saved her, one last time and she was proud.

* * *

Selina wanted nothing more than to collapse in her bed and sleep. Just pretend that all of this was a nightmare and she'd wake up to find Pam alive and well, but she knew that this wasn't a fairytale. This was real life and when someone was gone, they were gone. It would hurt for the longest time and then over time that pain would lessen until she just remembered the good times.

Arriving back at her apartment, Selina found Bruce sat outside on the metal stairs by her window, now in a casual hoodie and jeans. Of course, he was there. She didn't feel like talking about her feelings, she'd just bottle them up like she normally did, so when he stood up to meet her, she ignored him and sat where he had been.

"Selina..." He didn't know what to say and she wasn't sure whether there was anything that he could say.

So Bruce just sat back down next to her and the remained in silence until the sun began to rise. Another day begins, washing away the tragedy of night.

"I know how much you cared about her."

"You don't know anything about me!" Selina didn't notice her lip twitch in anger as she jumped to her feet but he did. Bruce watched her but didn't say anything, angering her even more. "You don't know me!"

He stared on at her outburst, still refusing to respond. "What are you even doing here? We've met three times! I am nothing to you!"

When she still failed to get a reaction, she hit his shoulder, knowing it would hurt from what he went through last night. "Say something! Anything!" She hit him again and he reacted with nothing more than a wince. "Blame me! Tell me this is all my fault! Please..." Selina's voice cracked and she felt the sting of tears, so quickly turned around to look at the city.

She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry. It's what he wanted, for her to crack and tell him all about how she couldn't cope with it and how she needed him to save her. "Just go." She told him, gripping the barrier so hard that her knuckles were turning white.

She was right, Bruce was manipulating her with his silence, just not in the way she believed. He'd gone through this will his parent. Greif, he didn't know how to deal with it then and he still wasn't sure right now but he knew what she needed, while the wound was still fresh. She needed the silence, she needed somebody to vent out her anger and guilt onto, and now she was right, she needed to be alone.

"Okay." One word. The same word she had used when she left him to help those two people alone. He wasn't being malicious but it didn't stop her feeling her heart sink in her chest causing her grip loosen but she didn't turn around, she wouldn't. That wasn't what she wanted to hear, and they both knew it. She wanted to hear him say that he wasn't going anywhere and that he'd help her through it but she needed it. To be alone, so she listened to his footsteps as they grew distant until she couldn't hear them anymore, then she crumbled. Now sat with her knees to her chest, leaning back against the cool brick wall, not noticing her own discomfort, as she watched the city go by, people went to work, cars kept driving, the world kept turning, while she remained still, lost and alone.

 **While Harvey will remain in the background for the next few chapters as the focus remains on Bruce and Selina and the repercussions of their night out, his storyline is going to come to head in a big way very soon that will carry over for a while and affect his and Bruce's relationship for good.**


	17. Patience and Timing

Aside from leaving food outside her window in the evening before the curfew, Bruce left Selina to her own devices for four days, deciding to spend his time researching into the lead he'd gotten from Clayface before he had gotten away. Using his father's computer, and the technology Lucius had added to upgrade it, in the cave to trace for the energy signature of the altered Lazurus Waters. He found a single trail leading from the mall parking lot he had confronted Clayface out to slaughter swamp where it appeared to be highly concentrated, suggesting that there was another Lazurus Pit, besides the ones in the Yuyan building and beneath Blackgate Penitentiary which were being monitored by Wayne Enterprises, in Gotham.

He decided to visit Harvey's to find out he was doing first, taking the Land Rover from the garage at Alfred's suggestion and after telling him about the swamp he decided to drive Bruce. When they arrived at city hall Bruce left Alfred in the car with the promise that he wouldn't be long. Taking the concrete steps two at a time, Bruce was beginning to regret ignoring Lee's advice. When he'd arrived home from Selina's apartment, Lee was already at the manor with her medical bag waiting. She had suggested at least two days of bed rest and had told Alfred to keep an eye on him as he was showing signs of a concussion, likely a parting gift from Professor Pyg.

Bruce clutched his ribs and pursed his lips as he made it to the top, taking a second to catch his breath before passing through the middle of the four pillars in front of city hall, through the already open oak doors to a hive of activity. People buzzed around the room, circling like vultures as they waited for somebody to give up their seat while others stood in long queues from the main desk, spanning across the room with almost all of them standing within an inch of each other to protect their place in line.

The receptionists looked panicked and exhausted as they had to listen to another person's experience of last night, as one of them looking around the person standing in front of them to see the line of people here to complain, their face drooped more.

"Excuse me." Bruce said as he tried to pass through the line to get to the back offices only to be met with a firey response.

"Piss off, I've been waiting here for an hour."

Deciding to avoid any unnecessary confrontation, Bruce muttered a sorry and walked around the queue, sticking to the walls. Heading into the back he wasn't met with any questioning looks or people asking what he was doing back there. Benefits of being a billionaire he supposed. Entering the office labelled planning director, Bruce found Harvey exactly where he said he'd be, apparently when the gang war began four days ago, several city officials decided that now was the time to take an extended break.

"Hey." He greeted, giving Bruce an odd look as he walked in the door.

"How are you doing?"

"I could ask you the same!" Harvey laughed. "What the hell happened to you?"

"I..."

"That girl, she's not... like kinky is she?"

"No, I..." Bruce was irritated to hear Harvey joke about Selina as she grieved for her friend but knew that there was no way for him to know that he was being insensitive.

"Fell down the stairs?" He asked seriously.

"Yes actually." Bruce answered, surprised.

Harvey laughed again and Bruce didn't tell him to stop, he was glad that Harvey was still acting like himself. It didn't seem like the added stress on his father had worsened their home life and he was glad. One weight off of his shoulders before he had to leave.

"What did you wanna talk about that was so urgent anyway? I thought you'd be cooped up at the manor or the tower."

"I'm going away on a business trip for a couple of weeks."

"Oh, yeah, my Dad's talking about going on one of those till the dust settles."

"No, really we're meeting to get investors in on the latest tech that Lucius has developed."

"What is it this time, flying cars?" Harvey joked.

After some more crude comments, laughs and a quick goodbye, Bruce headed back out to the car climbing in next to Alfred. "How is Mr Dent?"

"Fine Alfred, he seems unaffected by everything going on."

"I'm glad to hear that Master Bruce." As much as he likes to pretend that he disliked Harvey, Alfred did care about him in his own way. He was more paternal than Bruce believed that he knew. As stern as Alfred had been with Bruce when he was a child, he always cared particularly when he needed a confidence boost. There'd be some British metaphor that Bruce would find funny and a lesson about being a better man.

"Now, are we going directly to that ghastly swamp or would you like to make a stop by Miss Kyle's apartment first?"

As much as Bruce wanted to check on Selina again, he'd been going there in the evenings and so didn't want to disrupt that pattern. The lead was what he needed to focus his time on now, he was close to getting the answers that he desired, he knew it. "The swamp, Alfred." He said, somewhat selfishly.

Bruce noticed the clusters of police cruisers and blockades appeared to dissipate during the half an hour it took to get across Old Gotham and onto Tricorner Island. Jim had called him the day after everything began, taking a moment out of his schedule to offer a patrol to pass by the manor every half an hour. While Bruce had refused profusely, every couple of hours he'd noticed a pattern with a cruiser stopping by the manor gates and hanging around for a few minutes before leaving. Bruce was glad that Jim hadn't taken his words to heart but irritated that he was wasting a patrol, that could be helping somebody else, on him, wondering if Jim would feel differently about protecting him if he had realised the vigilante he had been ostracizing for bringing the Pyg in on the morning news was him.

Arriving at the waterline, Alfred parked the car along the dirt road while Bruce went over to the small shack to rent out a small paddle boat as transportation to Slaughter Swamp. When Alfred insisted on paddling, Bruce didn't bother to argue as he nursed his ribs on the journey, holding his torso with one hand as if it made a difference to the throbbing pain that now reached up to his back.

The swampland was dominated by trees and long grass, and as Bruce's stepped out his feet sunk into accumulated layers of mud, engulfing his shoes.

"You sure about this?" Alfred asked, reluctant to step out of the boat.

"We're here aren't we?" Bruce replied, tying the rope attached to the bow of the boat to a nearby tree to prevent it from floating away. With each step, his footprints quickly filled with water and soon all traces of him being there would be gone, replaced with a new layer of mud. He didn't let this discourage him as he trudged along with Alfred reluctantly following behind. He wasn't sure what he was looking for but he knew that when he saw it he would know. This swamp was the lock to the answers he had been searching for, he just had to find the key.

Five hours. They had been wandering aimlessly for five hours and even Alfred was beginning to run out of stories. The last being the tale of the pale man who came out of the swamp at night to hunt before returning to hiding before the sun came up. "Master B, it's getting on. We need to get back."

Bruce stopped, his shoes completely soaked through. "You just want to give up?"

"No, this is important to you but we get stuck out here in the dark then..."

"It has to be here Alfred, everything points to here." He declared, pointing down at the ground beneath their feet.

"We'll be back tomorrow, bright and early, with a fresh set of eyes."

"Of course, it wasn't gonna be this easy."

"If life was easy, nothing would be worthwhile." Alfred told him. "Look, you've got your reasons for wanting to find that bloody nutjob again, not that I agree, but I know you and when you set your mind to something, you get it done."

"I need to do this Alfred."

"And you will, it might take months or years but you found that bloke the other day with the help of that girl so maybe you should focus on her before you go swannin' off with Mr Fox, ay?"

Bruce looked to the ground as he thought about how stupid he'd been expecting to find something today. None of this had been easy, so why would this be? Alfred was right, they'd only covered a fraction of the swamp in all the time that they had been here, there was no way that they'd be done before he left and he still needed to tell Selina that he was leaving.

"Tomorrow?" Bruce asked, deciding to remain hopeful.

"Tomorrow."

The drive back through the city was quiet, both in and out of the car, with the traffic from earlier on had thinned out as the curfew drew nearer and Bruce in no mood to talk as he stared out of the window. They stopped at a Big Belly Burger fast food restaurant to get Selina some food.

"Do you want me to wait, or?" Alfred asked, finally breaking the silence when they arrived at Selina's apartment building. He looked up in disgust. It looked run down with the bottom floor windows boarded up and the front door with a large chain holding it shut. Bruce noticed this too, having never seen it from the front as he had taken the back entrance by crossing through the alley off of Albert Street the past few days and wondered if anybody else actually lived there or if she had just broken in and made a home in one of the apartments.

"No, you head back and I'll meet you at home." Bruce told him while he opened the door and took a step out.

"Right you are, don't forget that dinner is at seven." Alfred reminded him as he leaned in the door, holding onto the roof, to say goodbye.

"Thank you for today, Alfred."

"You're very welcome sir, I'll see you tonight."

"See you tonight." Bruce pushed the door shut and turned towards the building, pulling his hood up as cover from the light drizzle, that had started when they got back to shore on Tricorner Island, clutching the warm paper bag under his arm as he jogged around to the back of the building. Climbing the steps, two at a time, Bruce reached Selina's apartment quickly and swallowed nervously as he rapped lightly on the glass. Waiting a moment, he went to knock again before she came into view, walking over wearing black sweats and a hoodie. It was different from how he'd expected but neither the less, he was glad to see her.

As she slid the window up, they were face to face and Bruce noticed her eyes were red and puffy from crying. She looked tired and fed up, an awful combination. "What do you want?"

"I came to give you this?"

"That was you?" He nodded and she watched him for a moment before taking the bag. "...Thanks."

She stood her ground, blocking the window with her body and they stood for a moment in awkward silence. Selina's nose turned at the smell Bruce had brought with him from the swamp but didn't show it or question where he'd been. There was no sign of the woman Bruce had met here just a few nights ago. It was to be expected but that didn't stop it worrying him. "Wha-"

"Can-" They both tried to speak at the same time, stopping immediately. After a second, Bruce was sure that she wasn't going to continue, he did. "Can I come in?"

"No, thanks for the food."

"I just wanted..." Bruce trailed off as she slammed the window down and walked back over to her bedroom, leaving him out in the rain, wishing he had a way to help her and stop her from feeling the way that she did.

Instead of calling Alfred, Bruce decided to walk home, along the way getting a few odd looks from passers on the streets thanks to the mud covering his shoes and up to his knees on his pants legs. When he walked in, clothes soaked through, Alfred didn't question it, just giving him fresh towels and solemn look. The next day was the same, nothing from the swamp and a simple thanks and slammed window from Selina.

The day of his trip, Bruce didn't have time to go to the swamp, busy with plans and preparation to meet Willie Doggett, the world-renowned tracker. It had taken an abundance of time and money just to get a phone call with him and then, even more, to get him to agree to train him. This was his only chance to experience this and he couldn't waste it running around the swamp looking for something he might never find. Going alone, Bruce took a car from the garage and drove out to the city to leave Selina another meal. When she refused to come to the window, he left the bag out on the fire escape for her with a note inside, he'd prepared it for this very reason.

* * *

It was getting dark by the time he'd finished packing his bag, and he decided to check the study one last time. He found the trigger to the cave safely placed inside the book where he had left it, before sliding it back into its place on the shelf.

"Your security sucks."

"Selina?" Bruce climbed down the ladder to find her stood between the drapes looking more like herself. Dressed in black leather and acting wily. In his opinion, that was her that is what he had seen, not realising that it was just like him and Harvey. He was Harvey, talking to the facade, what she wanted him to see but right through her. It was what he expected from her because of where she came from, he was still yet to even chip the ice.

"What? You didn't think I come back here?"

"Well," Of course he didn't.

"Well, what?" Selina stalked across the room.

"You just... know how to keep me on my toes." They met by his father's desk, mere inches apart as she looked up to him. "You know, I'm glad you found my note after you didn't..." She cut him off, grabbing his shirt firmly to pull him down until their lips locked. The kiss was small, more than a peck but nothing magical, even so, when Selina pulled away, Bruce still found it difficult to catch his breath.

"What note?" She asked as Bruce kept his forehead resting on hers.

"Uh... In the bag."

"What bag? I've been out all day."

Realisation spread across Bruce's face. "That's why you didn't answer."

"Duh, but why leave a note."

"I'm leaving for a few weeks."

"Your leaving?" She was taken aback.

"On a business trip, I came to tell you earlier but,"

"No, that cool. You've got a company to run..." Her attitude changed and she took a step back, off of the rug averting her gaze to the ground.

"Selina..."

"Seriously, that's cool."

"If you didn't come by because of my note, why are you here?"

"I wanted to ask you a favour but it doesn't matter." She brushed it off like it was nothing but felt the sting of tears. As much as she tried to hold it in, the pain came out like an uproar from her throat, everything she'd been feeling flooded back in.

A knock, followed by Alfred asking "Master B, you in there?", freed Selina. She couldn't play pretence anymore so when Bruce turned, just for a second, to answer his guardian she was gone with a quiet "Bye". When Bruce turned to meet empty space, he tried to follow her but bursting out onto the balcony he found nothing.

"Having a little chat?" Alfred asked, opening the doors.

"Thinking out loud." Bruce lied, looking out into the darkness that enveloped the grounds, hopelessly searching for a glimmer that would let him know she was there. He could see she was hurt and he screwed it up again.

"Ah, alright. Dr Thompkins is downstairs. Shall I let her know that you'll be down presently?"

"Yes, thank you, Alfred." Bruce took a few steps forward looking over the edge of the stone balustrade, still nothing. He wanted to help her but wished that she'd let him. He could see how strong she was, she could cope alone but it didn't mean that she would have to.

"I was wrong." Alfred's voice startled Bruce. He'd assumed that he had already left.

"What?" Bruce turned to face Alfred, who was stood in the doorway, where he had been just a moment ago.

"To stop you. I was wrong." He held his head high, as he always did, a proud smile that Bruce had never seen before hanging on his lips. "Your father told you, that you've gotta help this city in any way you can and if this is your way, I'm not gonna stand in your way, Master Bruce."

Bruce was unsure where this had come from but was glad to know they were working on the same page now. That Alfred trusted him as much as he trusted Alfred. Perhaps it was that this was the first training trip that he wasn't coming on. "Thank you."

"You're very welcome. Now, Dr Thompkin's is waiting in the parlour, we don't want to keep her waiting."


	18. Hunger

**_Alfred,_**

 _I'm writing to let you know that I am okay. As it turns out, William Doggart has proven hard to track down. After our last communication, he's gone silent, claiming that I need to prove my commitment to training with him. I've found evidence that suggests he is staying near a Taktsang Monastery in Bhutan. I not sure how long it will be before I am able to return so while I know you will be mad, I have sent Lucius back with a story of how I am taking an extended break like the other wealthy socialites. He'll likely already be home as you are reading this but I have kept him from his family long enough. I know that we agreed I would be back next week but if I fail now, I will never get another chance to train with Doggart so I have to see this through. I hope you're well and I know that you're going to understand that this is something that I need to do. I hope to see you in a couple of months but until then I promise to be safe and use what you have taught me,_

 ** _Bruce._**

For Alfred, it was like the next two weeks went by like a timeless blur. Every day was the same; get up, tend to the gardens, prepare lunch, clean and go to bed. He hadn't spent an extended period of time by himself since the death of the Wayne's. Sitting in the kitchen was strange as it was when he had noticed the silence the most and as he read the letter, he felt proud but the loneliness crept in slowly. Bruce may have been okay spending time alone but Alfred was not, however, he wasn't going to let his needs hold the boy he thought of as his son back any longer.

He had his whole life ahead of him and Alfred had already lived enough for six lifetimes, he had realised that it was time for him to take a back seat and trust the decisions that Bruce was making. He had spent the last two weeks contemplating what to do with his newfound spare time, after all, he couldn't spend all of his days hanging around in Wayne Manor all of the time. Perhaps he'd offer to assist Dr Thompkins at her clinic while Bruce was away.

The sound of light thump followed by footsteps from above drew Alfred's attention. If Bruce had been here he wouldn't have noticed it but the creaking of floorboards above drew his gaze up to the ceiling. Placing the letter down on the counter and picking up the cheese knife, he had been using to prepare his lunch, Alfred considered going to get the shotgun out of the display cabinet he'd dusted this morning before heading up the stairs, deciding that he didn't need it. It had been a while since he'd had a good rumble, he could use the practice.

Arriving at the source of the sound, Alfred put his ear to Bruce's bedroom door to hear somebody definitely shuffling around. His fingers touched the handle and it slowly twisted under their pressure. Pushing the door open, Alfred saw...

* * *

For Selina, it was like the next two weeks went by like a timeless blur. Every day was the same; get up, eat, sit on the couch, eat, and go to bed. She had left her apartment twice since Pam had died. Once to visit Pam's flower and once to visit Bruce before he left. As she sat, hungry, she contemplated how simple life would be if she had a butler as he did. She wouldn't be sitting here in a sweatshirt and jeans deciding whether or not she was hungry enough to go and buy some food considering she had nothing left in her apartment.

Selina went from sitting to pacing across the open floor plan but still remained undecided. It was the knock at the door that pushed her along.

"Selina..." The unmistakable sound of Buzz's voice rang from behind the door and Selina scurried to find the key for the padlock, shocked that she was hearing from her again after they parted ways. Wondering what the hell she could possibly want, she considered her options, determining that answering was her best option.

"One second!"

In the kitchen area, Selina was pulling open the draws and rifling through the fake and real jewellery mixed together, pieces of paper and other bits and pieces she'd dumped in them over the past few months. When she got to the final draw she found a piece of paper sitting on top and almost brushed it aside. One insignificant piece of paper she thought she'd lost. All those years ago, when Pam looked after her after Dexter's death Selina only communicated with her through writing. This was the first piece they'd wrote on together. They'd spend nights having whole conversations on paper but this meant the most because it was the first.

"Selina!"

She wasn't sure how long that she spent looking at it but Buzz's impatience drew her attention back to the task at hand. She shoved the paper into her pocket and continued searching, finding the key tucked away at the back. Hurrying over to the door, Selina pushed the key into the lock and heard it click as she twisted it and let it drop to the floor with a thump, sliding along the carpet as the door being opened pushed it along.

The padlock settled as Selina came face to face with Buzz and two guards. Buzz looked different, her hair was straight and reached just below her shoulders, almost certainly a wig, and she wasn't dressed up, just regular street clothes. She could almost be mistaken for somebody sane if she's be able to get rid of that look in her eye that screamed insanity. "I didn't think you made house calls."

"I heard about Pamela, I wanted to check on you." Selina knew that she was lying but when she raised her arms, expecting a hug, Selina did just that. Human contact was good, even if it was with this crazy bitch and her ulterior motives.

"Thank you." She whispered into the older woman's ear. Her own lie.

"You're welcome, sweety." Buzz said softly, gently brushing her hand through Selina's hair.

"Can I come in?" She asked after a moment, surprising Selina. She never asked, she demanded and got her way.

"Sorry, yeah."

"Stay out here boys." She ordered, her lackey's getting comfortable in the hall Selina had only ever seen once before when she first moved in.

Selina stepped out of her way and Buzz breezed on by heading right for the kitchen. Closing the door, Selina turned to see her running her finger along the countertop, before rubbing the dust between her thumb and index finger, looking at it in disgust.

Already tired of her looking down at her, Selina decided to cut to the chase. "Why are you really here?" Buzz looked at her incredulously, the girl was being disrespectful and she didn't care. "I know you aren't here about Pam, you didn't come all this way to pay your respects."

Buzz narrowed her eyes, watching Selina like a snake watching its prey, just to see if she had any more life left in her. When she said nothing else Buzz decided to bite. "I WAS sorry to hear about Pamela, she was naive and a little reckless but she had a good heart, but you're right, I'm not here about her."

Selina walked to the back of the couch, which faced the kitchen, leaning against it and folding her arms expectantly.

"Carmine requires your specific skillset for a job."

Selina scoffed. "Why me?"

"He wanted the best."

"Don't flatter me."

"I'm not, I talked you up to him, convinced him."

"I told you that I was out, I meant it."

"And it would be very embarrassing for me to go back to Carmine empty-handed, wouldn't it."

Of course, she should have known. Buzz never asked she demanded and she got her way. She owned these streets, hell, she owned this building, it was the only reason it was empty. By nightfall Buzz would have caught her if she ran, there was never any point in running unless you had something to run towards. Selina had nothing now.

"Can I at least grab some shoes?"

"Sure, just don't get any ideas."

Selina rolled her eyes before heading into her room. She scoured the floor for a matching pair, finally coming across a pair of black sneakers that she pulled on, tucking the laces in by her ankles before grabbing her knife off of the nightstand and pushing it up her sleeve. Taking a hair band off of the same nightstand, she pulled her hair up into a messy ponytail, that failed to prevent her curls from tickling her ears and the back of her neck.

Heading downstairs with Buzz and her guards, Selina was made to get into a black SUV with tinted windows. She was then handed a fabric hood and told to put it over her head. She complied, just sitting still for the hour drive out of the city, somewhere into the countryside. Buzz then took her arm as she led her up to Falcone's office and pushed her into a soft chair where she was finally allowed to remove the hood.

"I am sorry about that my dear, but as you know, you can't be too careful these days." Falcone was an old man, he was bald on the top of his head and had whispy grey streaks around the back and sides. He was dressed like a businessman, looked well rested and had a smile playing on his lips which made Selina nervous considering the stress he must have been under with his war against Maroni still waging on.

"It's not like I had much of a choice." Selina said harsher than she'd intended, sitting back in her chair getting comfortable. The closest she had come to an office this nice, and seats this soft were in Bruce's study. She was going to make the most of it for whatever amount of time she spent in here.

"Gracey?" Selina watched his gaze turned to Buzz without moving his head and his expression changed.

"Yes, sir." Buzz sounded like a child being told off, her voice getting higher with nervousness.

"I thought I told you to ask this lovely young lady if she felt up to it."

"Yes but..."

"Did I tell you to force her here?"

"No, but..."

"No but's! I'll deal with you later."

Selina heard Buzz turn on her heels and shut the door behind her. It was liberating to know that there was somebody that even she was terrified of. She was going to enjoy the threat that came with Buzz's next greeting because of this.

"I'm very sorry to have troubled you, my dear, if you are not feeling up to this, I will be more than happy to postpone. My step-daughter can be difficult occassionally." His voice had returned to the soft and calm way it had been when she first sat down.

Thinking about it, Selina decided to get this over with now. Whatever it was about was clearly important to him and she figured it might be a good distraction. "No, I'm fine." After a brief pause, he didn't speak. "What did you want?"

The smile returned to his face as he spoke. "As you probably know, Sal Maroni is on his last legs. Every day my men take more from him..."

Already bored, Selina cut him off causing him to laugh. "Can you not give me the 'I'm gonna win speech'."

"A woman that just wants to get straight to the point. I applaud your boldness."

"No, I'm just tired."

"I understand, in this business, I've lost friends too, I lost my first wife. It's hard." He took a moment to look at the photograph on his desk. It was a black and white image of a woman. She was beautiful, brunette hair, and wide brown eyes. She looked like their daughter, he saw her in Sofia every day.

Selina wanted to scream at his comparison. Pam wasn't in the business. She was innocent.

"Anyway, when I have taken down Marioni, I will require your services to get some deeds for me, I assure that you'll be handsomely rewarded."

"Deeds?"

"I have no intention of killing Sal, we came up together. It was an accident, us ending up on opposite sides. Besides, if I kill him, he will just be replaced. I want to get him in Blackgate, then you will 'acquire' the deeds to his properties and I'll buy them out to wipe him off the face of Gotham."

With her interest now peaked, Selina leaned forward in the chair from her slouched back position.

"His empire will then crumble and leave him with nothing."

"How does Mouse fit into this then?" Selina asked, putting two and two together.

"I'm glad you asked. Mouse is trustworthy, that is what the family is all about, trust. For my plan to work, she needed to be on the inside to ensure my thief could get in and out of the warehouse undetected, you being friends as Gracey says, is just an added incentive for her."

Selina felt a Eureka moment go off in her head as everything slotted into place. How Mouse knew something big was coming, why she was traded and why she was here now.

"So it was you that planted the bomb at the shipping yard?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

"A necessary sacrifice. You don't have to answer now, but I will need your answer within the week, I'll have my secretary give you a number to call. "

"I haven't got a phone." Selina informed him, remembering smashing her phone against the rooftop after hearing Pam's message. She regretted it. She wished she could play it back just once more, to hear her voice one more time.

"That's not a problem." He pressed the intercom button that was built into his mahogany desk, speaking into it when it buzzed. "Jennifer, could you find Miss Kyle a phone."

"Just give me one moment, sir." She answered promptly.

Sitting in silence, waiting for Jennifer to return only amplified the excitement in Selina's chest. She hadn't felt like this about a job for over a year. Everything she had done recently involved mingling. Selina hated mingling, she loved the danger, preparation and risk that came with a job like this. She had been right, this was going to be a good distraction.

"I don't need a week."

"Sorry?"

"I'll do it."

"I'd hoped you'd agree. Now, down to business." Falcone reached into his pocket and took out a diamond, the biggest diamond Selina had ever seen, and placed it down on the desk in front of her. She couldn't hide the awe she felt just looking at it so when he told her to pick it up, she didn't fight it and gladly examined it with childish glee.

"What is this?" She asked as she regained her composure.

"A test or trial run you might say."

"Okay," She urged him to continue on as she placed the diamond back down on the desk. He took it, placing it back inside his the outside pocket of his grey suit jacket.

"I want you to break into this house and steal it."

"Alright."

"Alright? Nobody outside of this room knows what I am asking of you so if you are caught, I cannot protect you."

"It's fine, I won't get caught."

He narrowed his eyes as he watched her carefully, not sure whether it was confidence or a lack of care about her own life. "I admire your phlegmatic character. If you wanted a more permanent position..."

Selina cut him off, her willingness to go through with this job was a coping mechanism, she had no intention of coming back into the fold. "No, I'll do this but that's it."

He nodded, accepting her position from what his step-daughter had told him but still remained convinced that he'd get her on side. "So what's the timeframe?" She asked to bring the conversation back to the job.

"Maroni goes down, that's your three-day notice. You'll have the address and anything else you need for planning by then and then it is down to you and the mouse."

"What about for the diamond?"

"How long do you need?"

Selina took a moment to think. "...Two days."

He put his hand out for her to shake, and repeated it. He liked her confidence. "Two days."

Pulling her hand away, she knocked a pen on the ground, causing it to roll onto the floor. Before he had a chance to tell her to leave it, she slipped off of the chair and onto her knees, crawling under the desk to pick it up. After a moment, she returned the pen back to its original position, not bothering to sit back down.

"Well, thank you, Miss Kyle, I expect you in here with the diamond in two days."

"Will do."

"Gregor will drive you home."

"Sure thanks." Selina turned away from him and smirked as she felt the weight in her pocket, stopping as she held onto the door handle.

"Oh, yeah." She said, reaching in and holding the diamond in her hand again. "Catch." She tossed it over to him and he caught it above his head with two hands, looking down at them when he lowered his arms.

Selina exited his office with a spring in her step, taking the phone that the receptionist offered her as she passed by, following Gergor, a large man with bright ginger hair and a big bushy beard. She couldn't help but think on the journey down through the mansion that if he had an axe, he could easily pass as a lumberjack. The journey back to Gotham was a long silence. With Buzz in the car, at least she got the occasional conversation, with Gergor she was just left with her thoughts, like when she was in her apartment.

Taking a look at the burner flip phone she had been gifted, Selina decided that she didn't want to go back home. She decided she wasn't going to wallow in her own self-pity anymore, Pam would have hated to know this was what she had been doing for three weeks, so she asked her driver to take her up past Bristol and after being not so politely told that she was not in a taxi, he agreed to leave her just past the Trigate Bridge. He didn't both to ask what business a street thief had in such an upper-class neighbourhood but then again he didn't care.

Selina wasn't sure why she was heading towards Wayne Manor, even as she walked the rest of the way. She could go anywhere but justified it in her head as leaving her new phone number so that he'd be able to call her whenever it was he got back. It was only then that she realised that in all the times that they met up, not once did they do the typical trading of numbers that most people did. Then again, they didn't meet in normal situations.

Arriving at the gates of the Estate, she found the gates as she had expected. Locked up tight with no way in but over. So she did just that, following the gravel road down to the front of the manor where she followed the building along to the east side, spying the third window along on the second floor. It was the one for his bedroom and after a quick run up using the wall to boost her jump. Holding onto the window ledge, she pulled herself up and tried to push the window up. It didn't surprise her that it slid up, she was joking when she had come to see him a couple of weeks ago when she said his security sucked.

Climbing in, Selina hit the carpet with a thump and the first thing that she noticed was the lack of space. He had a large bed with an old chest at the end of it, had to at least be a queen, but the room itself was small. A couple of sets of draws, a desk, and an en suite. Compared to Mrs Kane's bedroom and the guest room that she had been given to stay in here, this was a closet. As she walked across the emerald carpet that matched both the bedding and the drapes, she didn't hear Alfred down in the kitchen but he had heard her.

She was sitting at the desk, writing on a piece of paper that she had found in one of the draws beside her when he burst in, expecting to find a team of experienced burglars. He did, in a sense, just not one he was expecting. She spun around on the chair, ready to run when she saw him looking ridiculous, wearing an apron with a cheese knife above his head.

"Alfred? I thought you were off, chauffeuring Bruce around for some business meeting." Selina said to the dumbfounded butler.

"Master Bruce is capable of looking after himself." Alfred told her, calming himself down and lowering the knife.

"Sure he is..."

"Hold on, what the bloody hell are you doing here?" He exclaimed, just because Bruce had taken a fancy to her, it didn't mean he was just going to let her stroll in whenever she felt like it.

Selina didn't bother to answer his question and took the paper that she had been writing on at the desk as she walked over to Alfred and tucked the note into his top pocket. He wasn't remotely happy about her being here and she was enjoying his discomfort.

"Give this to Bruce when he gets back, will ya." She tapped him twice on the chest, over where she had put the note, and continued on past towards the window.

Listening to her footsteps get further away, Alfred almost let her go before deciding to call after her. "Wait."

Selina reluctantly stopped, looking over her shoulder.

"What is it?" He asked. He wasn't going to invade Bruce's privacy and read it but he wanted to know what was in it.

"My number, just tell him to call me when he gets back." She flashed a quick smile and turned towards the window again. She couldn't help but feel that pang of jealousy over the relationship Bruce had with his guardian, her mother had abandoned her when she was just five years old, the people at the orphanage she lived at for four years were far from caring parental figures.

Selina touched the windowsill and stopped again. He looked sad, she didn't even realise she had noticed until now but she had. His eyes dull, brow furrowed and shoulders slumped when he realised it was her, a far cry from his regular posture.

"Are you okay?" She found the words leaving her mouth without putting much thought into it and she got her answer as he sat down on the chest at the end of Bruce's bed. Her feet carried her over and she settled down next to him.

"I'm sorry for being a bitch."

"No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped. You've been good to him." He insisted without turning his gaze from the door opposite them.

Sitting with him was surprisingly cathartic. More so than crying alone in her apartment. It was nice to have somebody there that didn't want or expect anything from you.

"I was sorry to hear about your friend." He sounded genuine, sorrowful. Not like Falcone or Buzz, or even Bruce. It hadn't come from him feeling like this is what you were supposed to say, it came from understanding and experience.

"Thank you." She whispered her response as she felt the wave of despair return like a tsunami, trying anything to stop herself from breaking down. It was weak, something she wouldn't have anyone see.

"I lost friends, in the war."

"You were in the army?" She quizzed, following his example and turning away.

"Yeah," He let out a humourless chuckle. "I'm a dab hand with a firearm."

Selina smiled at his expression, wiping a stray tear that had escaped her stinging eyes.

"There was this day," He tapped his foot lightly as he remembered one of the worse days of his life. "blue skies, everyone survived a siege on this little village. Then when we were celebrating, a little kid." Alfred's lip began to tremble, his voice wavering but he kept speaking. "This little boy came out with C4 strapped all over, and killed everyone except me."

Selina was stunned. She'd always looked at Alfred and assumed he had always lived with people like this or at least in luxury. Never would she have guessed that he had gone through something so traumatic.

Shifting slightly so that she could see his face, Selina found him clutching his knee with his eyes raw and red, cheeks damp. So, she did what she the only thing that she thought she could and placed her hand over his, squeezing lightly. Taking the paper she had shoved into her pocket when Buzz was at her apartment, she flattened the wrinkles out on her thigh before handing it to Alfred.

He took it from her and held it in both hands as he read it. Small messages written in colourful felt tip pens with the penmanship of children made him smile. "Me and Pam used to write them." She told him as he turned the page over to read the other side. "I know it's stupid but..."

"No, keep it safe." He faced her for the first time since she sat beside him. "You may not have all of this But it is worthless compared to good memories, always remember that."

Alfred handed her the piece of paper back and she carefully folded it before putting it back into her pocket, heeding his words. She wasn't sure what this exactly was, she wasn't expecting it when she came to leave her number but she was glad that they'd talked. She hadn't felt this good since before that night and she wasn't sure she would again.

"How did you get over it?"

Alfred could see she was asking for the easy way out and through the pain, but he couldn't give her the answer she wanted, he had to tell her the truth. "I never did. But one day, you'll wake up and it won't seem so bad. It took years for that to happen to me but I didn't have people willing to help me and show me that life wasn't over."

"I don't..."

"Bullshit, I'm right here."

"You don't even like me." She told him.

Alfred sighed deeply. "You were taking my boy away, getting into danger with him, did you expect me to like you?"

Thinking about it for a moment, Selina could see where he was coming from. She and Bruce had spent most of their time together in mortal danger that could have been avoided. He had every right to blame her for leading him astray.

"I didn't like you but now I can see how much he cares about you and how much you care about him. It's nice to see you two acting your age."

"He's lucky to have you." She told him honestly.

"No, I'm lucky to have him."

Selina marvelled at his self-effacement, he had truly dedicated his life to Bruce following his parent's death. As much as she wanted to stay, her stomach had other ideas. "I'm gonna go."

"If you need to talk, you can come here." He stood with her, a new sense of understanding settling between the two of them.

"Thank you, Alfred." She said, heading for the window.

"You do know that you can use the front door."

She didn't stop what she was doing. "Yep."


	19. Cat Burglar

She dropped her change in her hand of the barista, watching her count it as she put it into the cash register. She was a cute girl with her blonde hair, big blue eyes and soft cheeks that seemed to be the only area on her body that still carried baby fat. Being Selina's age, she must have gone to the local high school, probably one of the backing cheerleaders looking as she did, Selina figured. But it didn't bother her because she was nice enough, with her happy, yet slightly shy, demeanour.

Selina was headed back from Wayne Manor when she decided to stop off at ' _The Bean Palace_ ', it wasn't something she was accustom to but she only had two days and she had to prepare. Through the window, she saw that most likely due to the ongoing war, there was no lunchtime rush as there would typically be in a coffee shop. Just two old women talking quietly in a corner and a man in his mid-thirties with his focus drawn to the laptop in front of him. So she was here, accepting the black coffee from the barista as she asked whether Selina wanted a receipt. Quickly declining, she turned on her heels and headed towards the back of the shop, sitting in a dingy booth with red leather seats and a flickering overhead light by the window.

She got settled, remaining away from the window to keep a good view of her target. Sipping the drink, Selina immediately realised it was far too strong but swallowed the dark liquid anyway, ignoring the feeling of her stomach-turning. Thinking it would be a good idea to try the drink Pam used to swear by, Selina had immediately regretted it. She'd always had a bad taste in everything. Clothes, food, why would this be any different?

Turning her attention back to the man a few tables away, obliviously typing away on his laptop, she prepared to head back up. Faking to trip was easy, she just had to make it dramatic. It was ensuring they didn't watch her afterwards that was more difficult.

She took a few steps forward, towards the counter and when she was close enough to him, kicked a chair out, throwing herself towards him as she tried to get her balance. The chair legs screeched across the tile floor as the coffee soaked the unsuspecting man's back, turning his grey t-shirt dark brown stain on contact that continued to spread down. He jolted up, slamming his laptop screen down to protect it from being damaged.

"WHAT THE FUCK!" He boomed, turning around to face Selina.

His eyes filled with hatred and the veins in his forehead bulged as his face grew red with anger. "I...I'm sorry!"

"Sorry?" His facial expression softened. "Well, that's okay."

"Really?" She asked with fake naivety, batting her eyelashes at him, already knowing the game that he was playing. She had done it enough times to know it when she saw it. Out of the corner of her eye, Selina watched the two women share a giggle before looking away.

"OF COURSE FUCKING NOT YOU STUPID LITTLE BRAT." Selina stepped back, out of his shadow that loomed over her.

"Sir, could you please calm down." The barista rushed in between them in an attempt to deescalate the situation.

"Calm down?" He asked, incredulously. "How can I write an award-winning novel with this slut throwing coffee over me?"

Inspired by the barista's level-headedness, Selina bit her tongue to stop herself reacting. "Sir, I assure you that it was an accident, I saw her trip." When she realised he wasn't going to shout at her again, the girl continued. "Now, if you would like to come in the back you can get cleaned up and I will ensure that you will be properly compensated."

He opened his mouth to argue back but after narrowing his eyes at Selina who stood acting shocked, he decided against it, walking towards the counter. The barista placed a reassuring hand on Selina's shoulder before following the man into the back room.

Once they were out of view, Selina glanced back over to the old women not sitting too far from her to see them chatting away again as nothing had happened, more importantly not paying attention to her. So she picked up the laptop off of the table and put it under her arm and then man's bag from the floor, putting it over her shoulder. Staring at his table, Selina took his uneaten bagel too, before calmly walking out of 'The Bean Palace' onto the street. She almost felt sorry for what the girl was going to have to deal with when the man realised that his stuff was gone, but still headed in the direction of her apartment knowing that she didn't care enough to do the right thing.

She spent the afternoon and evening using what she had picked up over the years and the harddrive Mouse had given her to make her plan of attack. Hunting down blueprints, plans and CCTV footage from inside the mansion, Selina managed to devise a way in and out without being detected but as she researched, she couldn't help wonder why the other rich people didn't have systems like this. She would never have had been able to get into Wayne Manor undetected the night Bruce left if they had.

The next morning, she was ready. All she had to do was wait but staring down at her heist clothes on her bed. The same clothes she was wearing when Pam died. The clothes that should be stained with her blood from when she should have tried to save her friend but they were clean and it made her mad just to look at them. She couldn't wear them.

Walking from her room, carrying the bodysuit, she left her gloves and mask on her bed and took a large pair of scissors from the knife rack on the wall, which had been there since she moved in, and started hacking away at the material. It was cathartic to her, watching the scissors cut through the shiny faux leather like paper. Once the suit was sufficiently destroyed, Selina let out a sigh and dropped both it and the scissors to the floor, feeling as though she had taken some semblance of control back in her life.

After regaining her composure, glad to have been able to let some of the rage that had built up inside her over the past few weeks, Selina began emptying the two draws to her left of some of the real jewels she had collected up from various jobs and headed for the window. She would need a new suit for the job tonight and Halley's would be just the place for her to get it from.

Entering through the back door, Selina didn't bother to knock finding Halley hunched over a sewing machine, which stopped as soon as Selina entered the room. Rolls of fabrics lined the walls and more littered the room, everything that something could be placed on was covered making the tiny room seem even smaller. Halley looked up through her honey blonde fringe to see Selina and finished the patch she was working on while Selina sat down, not bothering to push the pile of fabrics on the armchair to the floor.

"Hey, Kitty Kat! How've you been?" Halley asked, her upbeat attitude making Selina roll her eyes.

"I've been better." She said, dryly.

"Oh, this isn't a social call?" Selina shook her head at the woman. "Well, what are you after?"

"I need a new suit."

She was shocked. "What happened to your other one, it was some of my best work?"

Selina didn't bother answering her, she didn't need to explain herself to Halley of all people.

"Well, what do you want? The same style?"

"Same style but less shiny, I need to blend in." Selina informed her of what she needed to know because that was all she was going to tell her.

"Matt, black, leather bodysuit." She listed Selina's request out as she wrote it down and Selina confirmed each point as she did.

"And pockets."

"Pockets." Halley repeated. "I can get that made for you by..."

Selina cut her off. "Tonight, six pm."

"Tonight? I've got other orders due for tonight." Halley swallowed nervously as Selina stood up from the chair and stalked over to her desk.

"I don't care, I need it for tonight." She demanded, slamming some of the jewels down on the desk.

She let out an excited squeal that made Selina frown before agreeing. "Oh, uh! Okay, it'll be ready for you." She had a nice act, but really it was all about the money for her.

Selina pulled her lips up into a fake smile to mimic Halley's stupidity. "Thank you."

* * *

If felt weird to be wearing something new after having her body suit since she was fifteen. It was like she stopped growing then from then, so there was no need for a change but now, she was beginning to regret destroying it, it was like a second skin making this new one seem alien. Trying to get comfortable in the stolen car she was driving to get to Falcone's mansion seemed impossible in her new suit, however, did have its benefits. Being made from a thicker leather offered more protection, the matt black colour would prevent lights reflecting off of it and it was less restricting which would allow her to have smoother movements, like being able to run faster.

The helmet with an eye mask Halley brought with her made Selina laugh. "Alright, you got me. But it would look lovely on you! Since you insist on having those curls hanging down, it'll hide them away and keep you safe, I'm only thinking of you." She had insisted when Selina reminded her that it was a black jockey's helmet with an eye mask stuck on the front. While she did think it looked stupid, Selina agreed with the point about her hair. If it was straight it would likely reach passed the middle of her back rather resting just below her shoulders. So, she replaced the eye mask with her own one and brought it along to save her brushing the hair out of her face.

She stopped the car in a ditch off of the mud road when the mansion came into view. Driving without the headlights on would have been dangerous, had it not been for the floodlights that bathed the area surrounding the mansion in a light so bright it could be mistaken for early morning. Taking the earpiece out of one her belts pocket, followed by a small device with a screen that stretched from corner to corner, out of another, showing her the lay of the land in a digital format, which was just a bunch of lines and dots, Selina clicked a button and in her ear she heard radio static followed by a voice.

"Sector four is clear, heading back." Falcone's coms system. The device hacked into any nearby radio signals, allowing her to hear everything.

Upon hearing the voice, she climbed out of the car and pulled the helmet over her hair, hiding it away before clipping it together under her chin and pulling the strap to ensure that it was tight. As prepared as she could be, Selina started heading for the first dot on the screen.

Mouse called the device a name Selina couldn't remember, GPS something. It had been another gift that she had been given after the hard drive to help her out. Arriving at the transformer box, attached to a transmission tower, she could now see the guards completing their patrols, and her way in, so if they looked in her direction they would see her. She took the small wire out of another one of her belt pockets and opened up the steel box. Inside was the empty socket she had to plug the wire into and so she did before turning her attention back to the GPS device.

After pressing the dot on the screen representing the transmission tower Selina kept her eyes on the ventilation shaft going up the side of the building, the power cut out, enveloping the area in darkness, and Selina ran in a straight line right across the field, sprinting past guards. Arriving at the vent, she took out a multitool from her belt and began unscrewing the covering, pulling it off of the wall and placing it on the floor.

"Is it a power cut?"

"We haven't got confirmation." Selina heard in her ear as she pulled the covering back into place. She was safe, she'd made it. She quickly took out the GPS and pressed the dot representing the transmission tower and the lights flickered back on. She remained still and silent, but felt a smile of satisfaction settle on her lips, standing up straight with her back against the metal surrounding her as she listened to the guards.

"Powers back, double back and repeat patrols just to be sure."

Using her gloves and boots to get a grip, Selina shimmied up the vent to the second floor with ease and followed it through to the first bypass before consulting her GPS again. Following the now changed map, Selina managed to find the office easily and looking down she saw it just as it had been at this time every single night at this time, empty and dark. Falcone left for exactly half an hour every evening, it was nine-forty now, so Selina had twenty minutes to get in and be on her way back home. If she tried breaking in at night she'd run right into a laser grid, so she had to make her time count and then she'd call him in the morning.

Pulling at the covering, it came loose easily so she set it down ahead of her to avoid making any noise and dropped down silently. Taking a small torch out of her final pocket, she approached the portrait of Falcone behind his desk and felt around for a release latch. Feeling a slight bump on the frame, she pressed down and the painting popped forward, swinging slightly on its hinges. Opening it up fully Selina got a good look at the safe and immediately took her helmet off and her earpiece out before pressing her ear up against the cool metal. Turning the dial to the right she found the first number almost immediately, twenty-seven. The next few numbers followed with ease as she tried Falcone's daughters birth date.

Selina laughed quietly to herself as she twisted the knob and pulled the door open.

' _Too easy_.' She thought, staring in at his lifetime of prize's, which was nothing more than a few pictures, a necklace, a wedding ring and the diamond on its own on the top shelf. Placing it into the only empty pocket on her belt, Selina closed the safe, set the dial back to what it was at when she came in and clicked the frame into its latch.

Once she was sure that everything looked untouched, she put her earpiece back in and then her helmet back on, ensuring that all of her hair was tucked in. She then climbed up on the desk, taking a leap so she was hanging from the opening to the vent before pulling herself up. She couldn't risk moving a chair because she had no way to put it back making it obvious she had been here and used the vents to move around.

When the covering was back in place, Selina headed back the way she had come, struggling to turn around. Climbing down to the ground floor, she used the same technique that she had used when she came in. Ready to make the last run of the night, Selina took out her GPS and pressed the dot representing the transmission tower, waiting a moment for the floodlights to switch off before pushing the vent out and climbing out onto the grass. After quickly pushing it back in, she took a sprint towards the transmission tower, heading for the red light that flashed above it, a beacon in the darkness.

Torchlight by the transformer box made Selina freeze, without thinking she made a b-line for the long grass and dived in to avoid being seen, hitting the ground with an audible thump.

"What was that?" She heard a woman's voice ask.

' _Shit!_ '

"I didn't hear anything."

' _Please listen to him_.' She pleaded in her head.

She didn't move as she saw the torchlight approaching. "I'm gonna check it out."

Shadows of the grass danced across Selina's body as she held her breath and remained unmoving except her right hand that reached down for the GPS. When she pressed the dot on the screen the floodlight returned to their original state, but the woman kept staring out. She narrowed her eyes as she glared out into the distance and Selina squeezed hers shut.

"Must've been a deer or something." She called out to her partner and after one last look, she walked away, turning her back away.

Once the woman reached the tower again Selina looked to either side of herself, catching her breath, to realise she wasn't being hidden by the grass. Surrounding her was a patch of pink amaryllis.

' _Pam's favourite, of course_.'

She rested her head back on the ground again, taking a minute. It was a long drive back to the outskirts of the city and an even longer walk back to her apartment while avoiding the police blockades.

The surge of adrenaline still pumped around her body as she lay there and she couldn't help but admit that she missed the rush that came with the danger and she definitely wasn't going to go without it for another year.


	20. The Return

It was now mid-December in Gotham City and while the war between the two crimelords continued, the cold weather had reduced the random acts of crime across the city since October allowing the police force to end the curfew. The newfound fear amongst locals had become a fact of life allowing the return of a semblance of normalcy. So much so that people were beginning to walk the streets at night again with the worst of the worst.

Harvey Dent was a privileged young man with his whole life ahead of him, a college degree, a high paying job guaranteed, a wife, perhaps some kids, so being in a back street dressed like a hoodlum with some of the worst people in the city wasn't something he had anticipated. A cheap hoodie over his back and a scarf covering his mouth an nose as a disguise. Desperation, however, is what had led to his decision. If his father found out about it, he'd disown him, prosecute him. The desperation kept his feet moving but it didn't stop the nerves. Even in the bitter winter cold, sweat stuck his, usually swept back, blonde hair to his forehead, allowing the points of it to scratch at his brow.

His blood pumped faster as he grew closer to his fix. Inside the paper bag carried by the woman walking towards him was the solution to all of the problems in his life, and seeing it, in person, caused all of his doubts to disappear. The voice in the back of his head won over his conscience and he made the trade. Swapping her brown crinkled bag for his. Even as she passed, he couldn't see her face because of their distance from the street lamp, just a few strands of pink hair poking out from her own hood. If he hadn't talked to her on the phone, he wasn't even sure if he would have known that she was a woman.

The second he had the bag in his hand, the pain he'd been feeling subsided. A weight lifted off his chest but he walked six blocks before turning off the street behind a movie theatre. Between two dumpsters, Havey hid the contents from any prying eyes as he took it out of the bag, quickly shoving it into his pocket.

' _Finally_.' He thought as he walked away, leaving the bag to be blown around in the wind. A way out from his father's abuse if he needed it.

It was an option he'd been toying with for a long time, more of a release, that would grant him the freedom he believed could only belong in his dreams. With every step, the desire to follow through with his plan grew and while he knew he should be scared, through the scarf, he felt a smile play on his lips.

Twisting the key in the lock, Bruce heard three audible clicks before he was able to twist the doorknob and push the door open. Stepping in, then shutting the door again behind him, he didn't bother to lock it behind him. Alfred would be home from the clinic soon and Bruce was too tired to care. The first thing to hit him was the smell, fresh flowers sat in the vase underneath the mirror in the entrance room. Lily's and Carnations, his mother's favourite.

When he'd called Alfred at the airport last night, he insisted that he would come and meet him but when he told Bruce about assisting Leslie at the clinic, he told Alfred not to worry about it. Thirty hours without sleep apparently disagreed with him and he struggled to keep his eyes open on the drive from the airport. He was used to fatigue, suffering for years with insomnia had helped it but it didn't change that all he wished for now was his bed and a glass of water. Begrudgingly he took a detour into the commercial kitchen, used only when his parents used to host parties and dinners and would get in caterers, as it was closest.

With his glass in one hand and his bag slung over his opposite shoulder, the wooden stairs, that split in two directions at the top, loomed over him. It might have irritated him that stairs felt like they were too much considering he had just spent two months climbing mountains, but he was too exhausted to care. Making his ascent, each step was worse than the last. He ached all over so when he finally reached his room, he didn't even bother to strip himself of his clothes, he dropped the bag where he stood and placed the glass of the bedside table before collapsing onto the bed with his arms outstretched, his feet now almost reaching the end. The soft sheets were gratifying and thanks to the long journey back to Gotham, it didn't take him long to drift off.

By the time Bruce awoke, it was mid-afternoon and just sitting up he could tell Alfred was home. His bag and glass were now gone, and in the glasses place on the table was a surprisingly neat note from Selina informing him that she was doing better and she had a new phone after smashing her old one. There was nothing about Falcone or his offer to her, she'd known that he wouldn't approve and didn't want him to call with his holier than thou bullshit.

As oblivious to what Selina had been up to as she was of him, Bruce left the note where it was to get changed, throwing the clothes that he had on into the laundry hamper before picking something more comfortable and clean from his closet. He'd shower later, he needed to eat. Pulling a t-shirt over his head, Bruce found it to be tight on his chest, trying another he came to the same conclusion. He'd need to speak to Alfred about getting new clothes. Pulling on some loose-fitting sweats, Bruce headed downstairs ignoring the constriction of his t-shirt.

"Bruce!" Leslie beamed when Bruce found both her and Alfred sat in the parlour room. "You're looking well."

She jumped to her feet, engulfing him in a hug that he happily reciprocated. "You do too, I love the haircut."

He'd noticed the trim almost as soon as he walked in the room. Her dark brown hair which used to reach the small of her back now rested neatly on her shoulders in a bob.

"Master Bruce!" Parting from Leslie, Alfred replaced her pulling him into a tighter hug. He'd missed him and he was going to make sure that his boy knew it.

"Alright, Alfred!" Bruce strained a laugh and Alfred reluctantly loosened his grip, allowing him to slip away to the chair across from him.

Once the trio was seated again, Bruce shared a look with Leslie before glancing down at the cucumber tea sandwiches on the tray in front of them. "Help yourself." She told him. "A patient prepared them as a thank you."

It was often that she would get gifts from her patients. While they couldn't afford to pay the bills that a hospital or other doctors surgery would charge, they would show their gratitude to her for her kindness in other ways.

While he took one, she poured him some tea into the third cup that was on the glass table and lifted it by the saucer to place it in front of him. Thanking her, Bruce finally began the conversation by asking them how the clinic was.

"The clinic?"

"Yes," He took a small bite. "Alfred tells me that he has come to work with you."

"Only a few days a week." Alfred corrected.

"But still a huge help," She narrowed her eyes at him for making himself seem useless. "But anyway, what about you, how was Boo..."

"Bhutan was beautiful."

"Why there? I'd not heard of it until Alfred told me it was where you were headed after your trip with Lucius."

"It's just out of the way, I needed to get away from this every so often, it makes me appreciate it more."

Bruce continued to tell and engrossed Leslie as much about his trip as he could without revealing the real reason for him going, he didn't want her to worry. Alfred sat quietly across from Bruce listening while occasionally bringing his teacup up to his lips. When he'd finished retelling snippets of his time away, he excused himself, sharing a look with Alfred as he did that said he'd tell him everything later.

Leaving Alfred and Leslie to get back to what they were talking about before he interrupted them, Bruce headed for the gym down the east hall. It had been a while since he'd last trained and if he was to keep it up then he would need to get back into the habit.

With construction now completed, the room had been furnished with anything you could imagine being in there, Alfred really took the word 'everything' literally. Treadmill, rower, exercise bike, a boxing bag and ring, climbing ropes, weights, the works. Everything was shiny and new, ready to be used. Crossing the room, passed the ring, Bruce decided to start with half an hour of cardio, setting the incline and speed before taking his shirt off, not wanting to feel it constricting his movements anymore.

Fifteen minutes in he felt a refreshing cool breeze hit his back and considering the difference in temperature between the gym and outside in the middle of winter, it meant that someone had opened a skylight.

"You can come down." He called out to the unseen pair of eyes that watched him from the rafters.

Hearing the sound of one of the climbing ropes straining with the weight of someone climbing down, Bruce didn't bother turning the machine off until he heard the light sound of their shoes hitting the vinyl flooring tiles. Stepping down himself, he turned to see her stood across the room from him.

"Selina, I was going to call."

"Ha, Ha." She snorted at his poor attempt of a joke as she swept towards him.

She stopped, leaning against the side of the boxing ring, making him meet her halfway. They didn't hug and he stood an awkward distance away from her. she didn't even acknowledge him as she looked around indifferently.

"You..." She drew out her pause, turning her focus back to him as she looked him up and down, realised she'd never seen him without a shirt on. "Work out?"

When he realised she had noticed him he unknowingly found his ego being fed. "Well, I thought that would have been obvious."

Wiping the sweat from his brow with a forearm, Bruce closed the gap between them towering over her, about two inches taller than the last time she saw him, but she wasn't going to let him win that easily. Taking hold of the bottom rope, Selina pulled herself up and rolled onto the ring. She now stood triumphantly above him.

"Do you wanna spar?" She asked and the question threw him off guard. The last time they spoke she'd kissed him out of the blue, and now after seeing him for the first time in almost three months, she was asking to fight him.

How did it feel as though he'd only seen her yesterday? He wasn't accustomed to people acting as if nothing had happened, he was used to people trying to make up for the time spent apart like Leslie only twenty minutes ago.

Leaning his head to the side, Bruce watched her for a moment until he was sure that she was serious. "I don't think that would be a good idea."

"Why? I'll go easy on you." She moaned. The truth was that she had never sparred before, it just sounded like fun. A fight where both parties had agreed, besides she could use the practice, just like him.

"No."

"You want to train, I want to let off some steam, it's a win-win."

He took a moment before refusing, it wasn't like she couldn't fight or wasn't capable, he was just afraid that he might hurt her by accident. After all, he was much larger than her in stature. "I don't want to hurt you."

She pulled a face like she'd eaten something that she didn't like, but it said a thousand words. Most of all ' _You are seriously overestimating your ability_.', but she didn't know that he'd been trained by masters in six different martial arts, Alfred and The League of Assassins for a short time. "I've taken down bigger people than you."

Learning to fight wasn't something she had learned for her jobs. It was something she needed to survive on the streets scrounging for food and a roof over her head. The term ' _fighting for scraps_ ' was literal in the Narrows.

"Fine." He gave in and climbed into the ring after her.

Selina walked over to the opposite corner excited, pulling her jacket off of her shoulders and resting it on the ropes, she was left in her tank top that showed off her slightly toned arms and shoulders and barefoot like Bruce once she kicked her shoes off. He couldn't help but stare, there was no doubt that she was skilled, he was beginning to wonder what he had let himself in for.

He took the first step but she made the first move, springing towards him with her fist raised as a distraction, he dodged low and it was the only reason that he saw her right foot coming towards him. Forcing it away with both hands he sent her spinning back, disorientated. Giving her a second to recover, he smiled.

"You're fast."

Looking back over her shoulder, she mimicked him cockiness earlier. "Well, I would have thought that would be obvious."

She lunged at him again from the ground and Bruce began the retreat back towards his corner; Selina continued her advance, the ropes closing in quickly behind Bruce. It was now or never. He struck out but she countered it with her forearm, punching his exposed side hard. He pushed back in response giving himself some space.

While he was catching his breath from her winding him, Selina went in for the kill. She charged towards him and he tried to reach out and grab her but she swung her torso low to dodge his arm. Using the ropes as a spring, Selina turned on her heels bouncing off continuing her charge from behind for a few steps before leaping from the ground. Her feet struck his back and he didn't have enough time to prepare for the impact so his knees buckle and he fell forward onto his hands and knees.

"I thought you were going to go easy on me." He held his head low as he spoke, watching her step towards him.

"I was..." She got close enough and he twisted his body, kicking her legs out from underneath her.

Selina hit the ground hard and let out a small groan before rolling onto her back. Bruce got to his feet but she remained in the middle of the ring feeling idiotic for getting as arrogant as him but Bruce felt guilty, assuming she was injured he offered an apologetic hand out and she almost felt sorry for him as she took it. Almost.

Pulling hard at his hand and kick her feet out at his knees, Selina flipped him over her but by not letting go of her hand he pulled her with him so they were now wrestling as they tried to pin each other down. Using his weight and his grip on her hand to his advantage, Bruce forced Selina over so that she lay back down while she continued to pound on his chest. Grasping a second hand, he forced them both above her head and sat back as he straddled her stomach putting just enough pressure on her so that she couldn't push up.

When she realised struggling was futile, a suggestive smile twisted on her lips. "You gonna take your prize?"

Bruce swallowed nervously and him freeing her hands allowed her to run them up his arms, towards his shoulders. With his hands now resting either side of her head and hers around the back of his neck, Bruce leaned down and pressed his lips lightly against hers. Pulling away he was faced with an all-knowing grin that told him he'd made a mistake.

She'd placed her hands on the back of his neck so they were inside his arms, jolting them out she knocked him off balance which let her flip them over again so she was now straddling his waist, not that he seemed to be complaining. In the same position that he was just in, it was her turn to lean down. Skimming his lips, she moved down his cheek towards his ear.

"I win." She whispered, placing a chaste kiss on his temple before sitting back up.

Surprisingly, he followed her back up resting his hands on her hips so she was now sat on his thighs, they were chest to chest, mouths inches apart, staring into each others eyes. "Do you want to come on patrol with me tonight?"


	21. Murphy's Law

' _ghzzzzzzzzzzht..._ '

The modified pocket radio, specially designed by Lucius, crackled to life until Bruce began twisting the tiny dial on the side and flickered through the channels until he found the one they were looking for. He and Selina heard snippets from the channels while they were crouched down on a top of a small deli restaurant, both feeling the bite of the bitter winter temperature. Grey clouds loomed over them in the sky, hiding the natural light from the stars, and they remained unsure whether they threatened snow or rain.

"...Of the worlds by H.G..." A radio play.

"...ant for christma..." Seasonal music.

"...Another cold one Dianne..." The weather.

"...10-4, over and out..."

"...Gave you my heart..." More seasonal music.

"That was it." Selina informed him, just in case he didn't hear it, but he was already in the process of twisting the dial back slightly just as an order was barked down.

They remained inches apart in silence, listening to the menial police jargon over the radio while the chill in the air was quickly replaced with a thick smog of tension, but neither young adult moved or made an attempt to speak.

The city was silent. Not like it had been for the past few weeks, before the shootout this afternoon each night had been bustling with life everywhere, cars would be heard driving by, people talking or yelling. The quiet was eerie, and Bruce suspected that the fact that there wasn't one injury or death from the shootout that it was deliberate. An attempt to clear the streets for something big. It was the reason he had changed his and Selina's meeting point to here, on top of a deli a few blocks from Johana Avenue.

"I didn't get a chance to ask before you left, but how did you know about Alfred working in the clinic?" Bruce asked after a while trying to spark up a conversation after his awkward attempt to kiss her that she refused when she had arrived with him.

"We talked."

Bruce attempted to blink away his confusion to no avail, the kiss was forgotten and a whole new uncomfortableness was brought to the table. "You talked? With Alfred?"

Alfred and Selina had shown no interest in each other what so ever. Alfred was fairly verbal about his detest for Selina and she hadn't exactly had the kindest words to say about him either. "About what?"

"That is none of your business." She said.

Bruce wasn't sure how to react or feel about his, whatever Selina was, and his butler becoming ' _chummy_ ' in his absence. He decided to turn his attention from wondering whether they were talking about him to the radio in hopes of forgetting all about it but she seemed to notice his dismissal of the revelation.

"Tt... Is little Brucie jealous?" She teased.

He scoffed and denied it but it caused her to laugh. The more adamant that he became, the funnier she found it and for a moment they were just two teenagers hanging out until the radio crackled back to life and the masks came back down, with the silence settling back down between them. ' _ghzzzzzzzzzzht..._ '

"10-53 on Johana Avenue."

"Dispatch could you repeat that."

"10-53 on Johana Avenue, cars abandoned from the shoot out this afternoon."

"We're close, you want us to..." The officer began but he was cut off by dispatch.

"Avoid it, Commish's orders."

"Copy, over and out." The officer cut the transmission.

Bruce switched the radio off and shoved it back into the pouch on hanging from his belt. The dispatch had confirmed his suspicions about the timing of the shootout. There had been no gang-related violence for two weeks, then there is suddenly a shootout where nobody is hurt or injured. It was a ploy to get the people too scared to go on the streets again.

"What are you doing? There's nothing..." It was Selina's turn to be cut off by someone who apparently knew more than her.

"Lobb's corrupt, if he wants his officers to avoid Johana, there's something going on."

She stared down at him over the edge of the building. "And we're gonna do what exactly?"

"Search for civilians and help anyone we can without getting shot." Bruce said much deeper with the voice modulator now turned on as he climbed down the ladder on the side of the building. It was a short run through the back streets.

Selina gasped sarcastically and rolled her eyes cynically before following him. "I'd never have thought to not get shot!"

He knew that she was going to dismiss his hunch, it didn't matter whether she thought that he was right or not, he had learned that it was just her way. On the plus side, being right every now and again felt good. He just hoped that he was wrong this time but the feeling in his gut hadn't let him down before, so it was about helping those they could if they needed it and not being killed.

While she down the ladder, Bruce admired how tightly the leather hugged her skin from a new angle and Selina felt his eyes on her. Enjoying the attention she didn't bother to call him out, she just felt a small smile grow on her lips. She'd seen it a few times now, even when they were sparing a few hours ago, behind all that money he was still a typical boy, although he would never admit it.

They ran side by side silently and Selina was surprised she wasn't having to lead him in the right direction, making her suspicious as to how long he had been going out on patrol for but she didn't ask, it was just nice to have someone to talk to, have someone there now that Pam was gone. She liked to blame the fact she was by his side right now on that but he knew that she could have said no, she wanted to be here, although she would never admit it.

The final alleyway was filthy, they had to be careful to avoid the debris on the ground that would be soon hidden by the snow that had started to fall a block ago and coming out onto the street together they saw the aftermath of the shootout from this afternoon. The cars went back for as far as the eye could see with doors left hanging open and some had bullet holes. If they didn't know any better, they would have said it looked apocalyptic, like all the people had just vanished.

Further down they could see two men, rummaging through a car that clearly didn't belong to them, they didn't need their regular implements to break into them though, this was probably the easiest job of their lives Bruce assumed. They were yet to see Selina and Bruce who stalked towards them quietly, the only noise that could be heard from them was the crunch of their boots on the settling snow.

Still oblivious to the vigilantes that were now stood behind them, the men were rummaging under the seats, with the blonde one in the front and the chestnut-haired one in the back. Bruce couldn't help but notice that they weren't much older than him or Selina and that they didn't look like your typical thieves. They were wearing bright clean Parka's and both had on a pair of red knitted gloves.

"Got it." Selina lunged towards the back seat to stop the one that had spoken getting out with whatever he had found and Bruce grabbed her arm to stop her instinctively.

"Stop!" Both men almost hit the roof when they heard Bruce shout at her, freezing where they were.

"Look, pal, we..." The man with the chestnut-hair began.

"Get out, drop it all and don't turn around." He ordered in a slow, calm voice trying to salvage the situation, having blown their cover.

Both of them complied but when the one in the back put his hands in the air, he raised a small box too. "He said drop it."

"I can't..."

Bruce cut him off. "What's in the box?"

"I can't it's my Mom's insulin."

Bruce felt a pang of guilt in his chest. He had come out here to protect people like these two and here he and Selina were standing them up, inflicting fear into the civilians in the same way that the criminals were.

Furrowing his brow under his mask, he shared a look with Selina as he considered their options. "What are your names?"

"Why does it matter?" The blonde boy finally spoke up, seemingly accepting what he assumed was inevitable.

"Drop your hands, we can help you get back safely."

"Dennis and he's Fred." The chestnut-haired man said.

Dennis turned around and looked at Bruce and Selina sceptically while Fred, clearly Dennis' younger brother, looked in awe.

"You're him." Fred gasped.

"I'm nobody, where are we heading?" He looked up the street, seeing nothing but cars, knowing that they'd have to be careful.

"Over in East End, it's not far, we'll be fine on our own." Dennis said bitterly.

Bruce wasn't going to give up without a fight. They hadn't had the best introduction but he must have known that they were lucky to get here safely, getting back they might not be. "You shouldn..."

Three simultaneous gunshots being fired into the sky, muffled slightly by the snowflakes all around that were getting heavier by the minute, caused all four of them to drop down low.

"Sal," Falcone's voice sent a shiver down Selina's spine and Bruce only recognised it from his research. "It's time, old friend."

Bruce saw fear in Selina's eyes that he had never thought possible from the personality she portrayed. "Shit! We need to go now or we're dead."

Bruce ignored her, turning his steely-eyed gaze back to the Dennis and Fred seeing a different kind of fear on their faces as though they were ready to run for their lives. They were scared of the unknown, Selina knew exactly what was coming.

"Stop." He ordered authoritatively, they listened unsure of what to do. They were all scared, inexperienced teenagers in the middle of a gang war, they may as well have already been a statistic but now their lives were in Bruce's hands and it was terrifying but he continued immediately, suggesting the only thing that he could think of. The voice modulator gave his voice the edge it needed. "We have to stay together, head up here." He pointed in the opposite direction of the gunshots. "Stay low and by the laundrette, there's an alley that leads out onto Dagwood."

They moved as a group between the cars quickly, with Bruce leading them and Selina just behind them. Cautiously, they continued moving and as Bruce turned to check how they were doing as they got to the laundrette, another gunshot cracked through the air, this time coming from ahead of them. Bruce's arms flailed and his knees buckled, Selina felt her heart drop from her chest as she watched him hit the concrete, just like Pam, leaving an indentation in the thin layer of snow settled on the ground and she cried out involuntarily, pushing past Dennis and Fred, falling to her knees beside him.

He jolted up to a sitting position, gasping for air as the pressure change in his diaphragm settled and he was able to get a full breath in. Then she remembered, his armour was bulletproof. She grabbed him by his shoulders, pulling him into a hug, squeezing tightly. "You're okay?"

"But I just got shot, remember?" He winced slightly at the pressure on his, probably, already bruising impact sight on the left side of his chest.

She released her grip on him so that he could press his back against the car next to her then swung one of his gloved hand up to the wing mirror and smashed the glass, picking up a piece from the ground after it fell to use it to see who or what he had been shot by. Dennis and Fred remained tightly up against the car with their eyes squeezed shut.

It was Maroni, a stocky looking man that carried a lot of weight on his stomach and appeared to be balding with whisps of grey streaking through his otherwise brown hair, who appeared unarmed and three men with assault rifles. They'd need to be quick to avoid getting shot, again in his case. At least they didn't have them on automatic or he'd have been hit more than once and would probably be dead.

"Three armed guards." He coughed.

"We know we hit one of you, come out or you're all dead." Maroni was quite soft-spoken, it wasn't said as though it was the order that it was, it was said as though it was a request, like they had other options. As far as Bruce was concerned, they did.

Continuing to breathe deeply for a moment, Bruce gave himself a second to get his composure back.

"I'll take the left, you take the right. They stay here as a diversion." Selina suggested.

Dennis' eyes shot open in a panic. "You're not leaving us!"

"No, we have to take them down or the second they see we aren't here they'll follow us." Bruce was pleasantly surprised by Selina's calmness.

Trying to get to her feet in a crouching position again, she was stopped by Dennis. "Promise me you won't leave us."

"We won't." She shook her head and rolled her eyes.

Bruce followed her up and around the cars, with their focus on the car and those they believed to be behind it, they both managed to slip up the side of the slight clearing unnoticed to get behind Maroni's last line of defence. Beside the red car, the group were stood in front of, Selina nodded to Bruce and the two headed down each side of the car quietly as he began his count down.

"You've got three seconds. One..."

It was now or never. They both took off quickly, charging the men in front of them, Bruce knocked the first one on the right off balance. When he hit the ground, Bruce heard the scrapping of his gun sliding across the ground, he only had a few seconds to take the next one down before he had it back in his hands. He continued his sprint towards the next man and as the guard turned towards what he only saw as a shadow, Bruce leapt into the air with his knee raised. His right foot landed on the rifle the man held in both hands bringing him towards the ground with Bruce's weight. The guard's nose collided with his attacker's knee and his body crumbled into a heap by Bruce's feet.

Taking a quick look over his shoulder, he saw the first guard on his hands and knees, scurrying to grab his gun so he spun on his left foot, connecting the heel of his right boot against the man's jaw with a sickening crunch before he fell slump in the snow, his breathing now steady. Settling back onto both feet, Bruce turned his gaze towards Maroni who looked impressed before proceeding to clap for them.

"I heard about you, locking up the Pyg. Saved me a job but I would have evened the playing field." He informed them, raising his hands flat out as scales. "He disfigures people, you disfigure him." A sick grin spread across his stout lips.

Bruce ignored his comment. "Falcone is coming."

"I know." The man's smile continued to play on his lips.

He swallowed quietly, this didn't look like a man that thought he could die any second, it made Bruce uneasy.

"Take them." He told Selina as Dennis and Fred stepped out. "Keep them safe, I'll catch up."

Staring at him for a moment, she saw the confidence he had and reluctantly obliged. She wasn't one to take orders typically but she was in uncharted territories her, knowing that she couldn't risk being caught by Falcone.

"Come on." They followed closely behind leaving Bruce alone with Maroni. They both watched them disappear around the corner before either of them spoke. He didn't want Selina or the others to be near Maroni, just in case, Falcone caught up because it would put them in too much danger.

He whistled before speaking. "Kid, if you are hitting that you are one lucky fucker."

Bruce cringed at his phrasing."Tell you what, the kinky bitches are the best, you know what I mean?"

"Enough!" He barked and reached into another pouch on his belt. "I can help you, as shitty a person as you are, you don't deserve to die."

"How sweet!"

He shook his head, pulling out a small length of black rope. Maroni put his hands up and Bruce tied his wrists together tight enough to leave red marks around the sides of the rope but the balding man didn't seem to mind. Seeing the men on the ground beginning to come around, he reluctantly led the Maroni past the laundrette and through the already open chain-linked gate, pushing him along just ahead of him.

Once they were both inside, he turned to shut the gate behind them. He heard it before he felt it, Maroni had taken his opportunity, lunging to pin him up against it and Bruce had a chance to react to in, he felt a flick knife penetrating his lower back. He cried out and Maroni laughed. "You know, you're wrong about me. I absolutely deserve to die."

' _Stupid! Never turn your back!_ '

As he twisted the blade, Bruce swung his head back hard just as Maroni went to pull the knife away. His fingers slipped from their grip leaving the knife as he fell back, Bruce found the man lying against the wall that he was now leaned against for stability and reached around to find out where the blade had entered.

"Nine... Ten..." Bruce winced as he brushed across the blade that remained between his ninth and tenth rib, that meant it had likely punctured his kidney.

"Sal!"

He had to move now, there was no time to stop whatever was going to happen to Maroni now. He pushed forward as fast as he could, holding his hand against his side with every step stinging like he was being stabbed again. With the other hand, he reached up to by his ear and pressed a button to activate his communications before leaning it back onto the wall for leverage.

"Penny, do you read?" He was struggling to keep his head clear when there was no answer and thoughts began racing throughout his mind.

' _Am I just going to end up like my parents?_ '

"Fox, Penny, do you read? I'm injured! Please respond!" He was panicking now, his desperate pleas down the microphone were only answered with dead air.

After a final attempt to reach them, Bruce gave up on the communications system and knew he had no other choice but to head for Leslie's clinic. It couldn't be more than ten blocks away, it was his only hope.

Two blocks in and he felt his left boot becoming damp and it was only then that he realised how fast he was breathing, he was still panicking. Having to rest, he leaned his shoulder up against a wall and slowed his breathing. The slower he breathed, the slower his heart rate would be and the slower he would bleed out but the increasingly dense snow added to how icey cold his skin felt making it harder to see and think.

Two more blocks and his boot was making squelching sounds with every slow step along with the crunching of the snow that had to at least be a few inches deep now, with no sign of it slowing down. It was easily a few below thirty-two degrees and he could feel himself growing weaker, it was getting harder and harder to keep his eyes open, there was no way that he was going to make another six blocks so when out of the corner of his eye he saw shadows of three people through the dark, shrouded by the snow across the street, he called out. "Help, please!"

They heard and turned their attention towards him.

' _Finally_.' He thought. ' _I deserve a break._ '

Bruce's relief was short-lived when as they grew closer he saw one of the women pull a knife from her belt and heard her ask. "What the fuck are you supposed to be?"

He continued pushing himself along the wall away from them, all the while knowing that he couldn't outrun them, he needed to get the knife out of the equation and he'd have a chance.

"Halloween's been and gone." The man informed him, their footsteps were loud as they approached, the snow was good for something he guessed.

With a glance over his shoulder, he saw the larger woman, with the knife, was closest.

"Awe, little birds already had his wings clipped." She told the others as she noticed the knife sticking out of his back, placing a hand on his shoulder to stop him. He spun on his heels and grabbed her forearm with one hand and her lower with the other before forcing it against the wall at an angle. Her arm didn't stand a chance, snapping so the bone stuck out from under her skin, without penetrating it, clear even through the big coat she was wearing.

The other two stopped where they were as she screamed, dropping the knife as she clutched at it trying to stop the pain shooting across her skin. The man was his next target, he was much larger than both of the women and so the most dangerous now. Bruce stepped passed the woman, ignoring the pain in his lower back he stood tall instead of hunched over as he had been and waited for them to strike. Only now was he regretting sending Selina away with the thieves.

He was tired, slow and in pain. The odds of him surviving this encounter had been slashed but as the man swung his fist high, Bruce went low punching his side hard enough to wind him, like Selina had when they were sparring. A low shot, with a boot between the legs, got him to his knees but attacking the man meant he had lost sight of the smaller woman so he wasn't expecting it when she hit him over the head with a brick.

Bruce fell forward hard, too disorientated to even put his hands out he landed with only the snow to cushion his fall and remained unmoving on the ground.

"Oh, shit!" The woman cried out, dropping the brick. "I... I didn't mean to kill him."

"Babe, he's still breathing, even if the little asshole should..." Once the man got to his feet, he kicked Bruce hard in the side. "...be dead."

The woman with the broken arm was still screaming. "Help me!"

"We need to go." He told her, trying to pull her along.

She yanked her arm free. "We can't just leave him!"

"Ree, he was gonna end up dead anyway, we need to get Bet to The Doc."

The woman was adamant not to leave Bruce in the snow but glancing between her friend and the stranger on the ground helped her make her mind up. "Fine, but we send The Doc down here once she's done with her."

Ree started moving with her boyfriend and Bet, taking one last glance at Bruce who remained unmoving on the ground. He laid there, unable to get up just blinking and breathing slowly as snow fell on him and he was once again alone.

Bruce had been laying there for at least twenty minutes, it had been long enough for a light layer of snow to settle on him and for him to stop feeling the pain of the knife, he was just numb, when a figure that had been watching all along stepped out of the shadows. They came closer they didn't appear to be affected by the temperature or what had happened if anything they seemed entertained.

Even after everything he had been through and the hypothermia he was suffering from now, Bruce managed to lift his heavy head slightly to see them through blurred vision. Over the wind and the snow, he heard a voice laden with experience and a sharp edge from the figure looming over him. "My dark knight, how far you've fallen."


	22. The Strongest Will

Jogging around the mansion grounds was cathartic, peaceful. The trees, the birds, the wind, the sounds of nature silenced everything Harvey was feeling, even the voice in his head. That whispering in the back of his mind telling him to do things, act on his darkest impulses. He hated that he had those thoughts, the feeling of release when he had held that small paper bag in his hand disgusted him, the very idea crossing his mind terrified him but to have gone as far as he did to follow through with his idea was truly revolting and unjust.

He needed to bide his time, his father would get what was coming to him in time. The police would discover his dodgy dealings with Falcone or one of his other criminal exploits and he would be free, besides he wasn't far from college. He had thrown the package away before he'd even returned to the grounds to avoid the temptation, aside from the constant verbal abuse, his father hadn't been as bad as he typically was, the woman he'd met during their time away had been a good distraction for him. Havey hoped that she'd stick around for a while, unlike the others. Things had gotten so good on their trip, his father was beginning to get on board with the idea of him getting a law degree, even going as far as to talk to some of his friends at Harvard.

Coming up to the mansion, however, Harvey's contentment was replaced by dread when he heard a woman's scream coming from the parlour. Taking off into a sprint from a light jog, he burst through the front door, slamming it behind him, he veered left through the open door to find his father leaning across Julie with his lips lightly pressed against her neck.

"I'm sorry, I heard you scream and I thought..." He trailed off as he turned his gaze to the open space and away from the couple on the couch.

"God damn it, Harvey!" Christopher pulled away angrily and Julie followed him, adjusting her dress, which had hiked up slightly, once she was sat up. Hearing the rage in his voice, she placed her hand over his sternum to calm him.

"It's okay honey, at least we when you're not here, I've got this one to protect me." She smiled at Harvey and he felt his cheeks heat up.

After a moment, thinking it over, Christopher muttered a response. "Suppose you're right."

"When am I not?" Christopher laughed out loud and it through Harvey off guard.

It was the first time since his mother and older brother, Murray, had died in the fire that Harvey had heard him genuinely laugh. Not the cackle his father would make when he hurt him or the bellow he'd make when he was pretending to laugh at somebody's joke. The last time he heard it was just before the fire when Tommy Elliot was sent to the psychiatric ward. He was telling Bruce to stand back up and brush himself off after Tommy attacked him, he wasn't even sure if Tommy was still there, it was like he just disappeared after his mother moved away.

He, Bruce, Tommy and Murray had hung out as children, all the time. It was just him and Bruce now, and his father had taken a strong disliking to Bruce after he became vocal about knowing about him being abusive, he'd always been like that, outspoken about what he thought was right or wrong. Harvey had always admired it but his father didn't so Bruce was avoided in conversations.

"Pour us a drink and be useful for once." Christopher order, ruining the moment and Harvey shook his head but agreed.

He crossed the room from the doorway, avoiding the table and chairs in the middle of the room, heading over to the free-standing globe by the window, lifting the upper hemisphere of the world to reveal his father's crystal decanter and glasses, all baring the Dent family crest. Taking two glasses, he placed them onto coasters on the table next to the globe and poured a generous amount of bourbon into each tumbler before handing one to his father and the other to Julie.

"Thank you." She said with earnest gratitude, while his father grunted in response to the glass being placed in his hand before taking a large sip and motioning for Harvey to leave.

"I'll leave you two alone."

"No, you don't have to go Harvey..."

"Honestly, I've got to get ready to meet a friend." He lied.

"Harv..." His father was cut off stifling a cough with his hand. "Excuse me..." He took another sip out of his glass before placing it on the coffee table beside him. "Harv..." Another cough, this time he didn't have a chance to cover his mouth. Julie felt a wet substance hit her face and quickly turned away towards Harvey who saw what had gotten on her.

"Dad?" He called out unsure, by now Julie had wiped her face with her hand and seen what Harvey had.

"Christopher?"

His coughing became more violent before he began to seize up on the couch. Julie lept to her feet, dropping her glass to the ground, desperately scratching at her face as it began to burn where the blood had hit her. With Harvey by his father's side, neither of them saw the spilt liquid quickly eating through the carpet and so until it was too late, it wasn't discovered that Christopher Dent had been poisoned with acid. But the question remained, as Julie screamed and Harvey watched his only living relative die in his arms, who had murdered Gotham's District Attorney?

* * *

The damp, musty smell and feel of rock beneath his bareback, suggested that Bruce had been taken underground. Along with his torso armour, his mask had been removed and as he laid still, he felt uneasy. He couldn't feel a breeze, the air was thick with dust and other pollutants, that gave it a stale, earthly taste each time he breathed in and out slowly as he simulating the slumber he had not long woken from as he collected himself. He didn't need to see to understand where he was, he'd been taught better.

The shackles around his wrists were cold, slightly moist due to the heat from the torches secured to the walls of the cave suggesting that they were near the coast. They scratched against his skin and he could smell the orange tinge of rust, if he needed to, he could probably break them with the help of the damage of age, when the time came to it.

While he hadn't tried to move, he was unsure why he couldn't feel the pain from his wounds or the chill of the winter air, and it made him sure that he had been drugged but there was no bandage he could feel. Until he was sure what it was, he couldn't be certain how it might affect his ability to escape.

Footstep approaching drew his attention and he just listened to the echo as they approached, heading right for him. From the echo, he realised that the area he was in wasn't as small as he first thought, maybe the size of the family kitchen in Wayne Manor. Between them, there must have been some sort of pillar or wall that was in the middle as the person veered right before stopping for a moment. Bruce heard the sound of water splashing, filling of a cup or bowl before they continued striding towards him.

The person stopped in front of his head, feet so close that they were almost touching his face, then place the metallic-sounding object filled with the liquid down on the ground before walking away again.

"Drink it, it will help with the healing." They knew he was awake, but that voice.

Bruce recognised it from the first syllable, shooting up into a sitting position he saw the man he'd spent all this time looking for, trying to stop, had saved him and stood next to another Lazurus Pit. "Ra's?"

Ra's Al Ghul was a centuries-old man, preserved at middle-age. He had his thick black hair swept back, and white beginning to show at his temples. His deep, honey brown skin was unblemished, he showcased the perfect man at his peak in life with the exception of his green eyes which carried the weight of his lifetime.

Laying his eyes on him again, saying his name, Bruce felt a wave of anger stronger than he ever had before and without even thinking he was up on his feet and lunging towards his capture, only held back by the shackles that were now cutting into his wrists as he manically tried to break them.

"Let me out of these!" He roared, pulling wildly as he tried to get closer.

"I apologize for the restraints Bruce but the Lazurus Water's have the adverse effect of insanity for a short time after use and it is necessary that I talk with you." Ra's walked back over standing a fingertips reach from Bruce as he contemplated what he meant, still unknowingly pulling at his restraints.

"I died?"

"No," Bruce felt a sense of relief that was quickly replaced by the anger again. "I was surprised, your persistence to live is a marvel and that is why I have brought you here, my heir."

As Ra's pulled a knife from under his cape, Bruce continued pulling on his restraints. Every fibre of his being was telling him to kill Ra's, end it all, but his mind remained clear. He forced himself to remember the vow he made after the carnival and Jerome's resurrection.

"Do you know what this is?"

Bruce examined the markings as he held it up carefully, the chains still rattling behind him. He had seen it when he researched Ra's, it was one of the only things that he could find out about him. "The Balahsi Knife."

"Excellent, and what do you know about it?"

"It's thought to contain mystical powers so only men with the strongest of wills can wield it but it was thought to be lost."

"Not lost, just in safe hands." His smile was like that of meeting an old friend, it told Bruce that he had a history with it.

Managing to gain control of his hands, he held them still with his fists clenched as he listened to why Ra's had helped him. "And the only weapon that can truly kill me, take it, Bruce."

Ra's unlocked the shackles with one hand before forcing the knife into Bruce's. He took it cautiously and pushed back the urges as he rolled it in his fingers for a second before clenching the handle in a tight fist. "Why now?"

"Excuse me?" Ra's hadn't expected to be questioned.

"After the court, you wait years and then send Clayface disguised as my father before waiting another four months, why now?"

"You were not ready until now."

"Ready for what?"

"I want you to kill me and lead our legion into a new golden era, prove that you are my true heir."

"No!" He refused the demand, turning away, but couldn't seem to release his grip on the knife, the urge was there, growing, magnified by the Lazurus Water's used to heal him.

"No?!" Another phrase that the leader of The League of Assassins wasn't used to, the last time that he had had that word uttered to him, he killed both of his daughters to teach them a lesson. "I have walked this earth for centuries! I have destroyed nations and armies! You think you can tell me no?"

Bruce ignored his proclamation, putting all of his energy into resisting the whispers creeping back into his mind. ' _kill him... kill him..._ '

"Perhaps I should pay your friends a visit, hmm? Harvey, was it? Selina? Katherine?"

"Leave them out of this!"

"You will kill me and take your rightful place as my successor or you'll never be free..."

' _kill him... kill him..._ '

"No! I won't, I am not your heir!" He wasn't sure if he was telling Ra's or himself as he started for the corridor that Ra's had come from.

Bruce's attempted to walk away was met by Ra's speaking in a low, quiet voice that oozed with menace. "Then allow me to tell you what will happen."

He stopped, knuckles white he held the knife so tightly. "I will disappear and let you live your life."

' _kill him... kill him..._ ' Ra's took a step closer.

"You will follow the path of the light, grow into a fine man."

' _kill him. kill him._ ' And another.

"Become a husband, a father. There may be a day you forget I ever existed, but then I will return!"

' _Kill Him. Kill Him._ ' Another.

"I will kill everyone you love! Just as you watched your parents die, I will slaughter your wife and children before your very eyes and there will be nothing you can do about it!"

' _KILL HIM! KILL HIM!_ ' Ra's was right next to Bruce's ear now, giving in he whirled around, grabbing hold of Ra's shoulder and thrust the knife towards his chest.

Watching the shimmering blade glide through the air was the easiest thing he had ever done, and why he realised he needed to stop. The tip of the knife was pressed against Ra's chest, any further, it would have pierced his skin and he would be dead. All of Bruce's problems would have been solved in one fell swoop but it wasn't the right way to do it.

"I will not!" He threw the knife away and the blade shattered against the rock that was the ground.

Ra's watched intently as his heir rejected his primal desire and a humourless smile settled on his lips. "Exquisite, even the strongest of men cannot resist the compulsion of the Lazurus Pit and you, a boy who has barely begotten to live, did."

Bruce remained silent. This was a test, he was willing to put his life on the line to test him.

"You may not be weak but you are a coward. I will return when you are ready to step into the dark and embrace your destiny, only then will you understand what it means to be my heir." With the flick of his cape, Ra's disappeared, leaving Bruce alone in the cave contemplating what had just happened.

He had gotten his wish, he had found Ra's but for some reason, he felt emptier than ever.


	23. Wake

Bruce Wayne had finally emerged from the cave system dressed in his blood-soaked costume to find himself facing Gotham Bay from Slaughter Swamp. A flimsy wooden boat cast on the wet sand and covered in snow carried him back to the mainland, the only company he had was the sound of the waves crashing on the rough sea after three attempts to escape the power of the tide.

Arriving home, Bruce entered the parlour, taking a throw from one of the couches and wrapped it around his torso. It was a fluffy, knitted one that his mother had bought, when he was a baby, from Mumbai, or so Alfred had told him. Oblivious to his near-death experience, the older man asked why he was wrapped up, only awake as he had just gotten back from the clinic and Bruce told him he was cold.

It wasn't a lie, the snow may have stopped but he'd walked home through what had settled, fallen out of the boat twice as he tried to set off. He had been colder than he had ever been but it didn't feel right like he should have felt worse. He didn't shiver as he sat with his torso soaking. Luckily his pants and boots we still waterproof but the tear from the knife had allowed water to rush in soak his top half.

There was only one follow-up question from Alfred after Bruce told him that he was going to bed. "Will we not be seeing Miss Kyle tonight?"

Bruce shook his head ' _no_ '. "Goodnight, Alfred."

It wasn't as if he hadn't thought about Selina, from the moment Ra's left he felt a sense of relief that he had sent Selina ahead. She had crossed his mind a few times as he rowed back to shore just like his other loved ones. Ra's last words replayed in his already scrambled mind, from being healed by the Lazurus Waters.

 _'I will return when you are ready to step into the dark and embrace your destiny, only then will you understand what it means to be my heir.'_

He'd know who he had been seeing, who his friends were. It made him wonder how much more Ra's knew. His threat was spoken like a promise, a promise that Bruce knew he would follow through with if he didn't find a way to stop him. It was how he planned on pushing him into the dark so he would embrace the destiny that Ra's saw for him.

Bruce showered before getting ready to sleep, he needed to wash away everything, the sand, water, blood, Ra's words. However, no matter how much he scrubbed, while his skin would turn red for a moment it always returned to its fair complexion within a few seconds, leaving him feeling dirty. He had put the people in his life in danger because of his morals. Not even turning the heat up would work, he just felt wrong. Eventually, he gave up and headed out of the ensuite back into his room.

With only a towel loosely wrapped around his waist, Bruce stood at the foot of his bed with his clothes laid out in front of him. His head thumped lightly, almost like a mild hangover. Cautiously he reached around to touch his back where Maroni had stabbed him and bent his arm at odd angles, running his fingers across his skin he searched for proof of his injury but there was nothing. It was like it never happened. Just like when he had stabbed Alfred after The Court, not even a scar was left behind.

With a sigh, he pulled on his checked pyjamas bottoms but left the shirt where it was. Even with the temperature below thirty-two outside, it seemed too warm to wear it so he walked over to the window and opened it. The cool breeze that hit his exposed skin was refreshing but it was wide eyes, a red nose and rosy cheeks that stared back at him from the cold that garnered his attention.

"Aren't you gonna invite me in?" Selina asked. She was still wearing her costume and it was clear that she hadn't been out of the cold.

Shaking the surprise away, he offered her a hand. "Yeah, come in." He pulled her over the windowsill with ease.

"I saw blood in the snow when I came back, I thought maybe..." She trailed off.

A sad smile formed on his lips. ' _She was worried about me._ '

"Blood?" He asked as he considered lying to her but the realisation that he had nobody to talk to about it dawned on him. Lucius would tell Alfred, Leslie and Harvey were off-limits and Alfred would feel guilty for not being there, but Bruce wasn't going to give him the opportunity to do so. Selina was different she could be trusted, she had proved herself over and over again.

"Yeah, on..."

"Selina..." He cut her off, justifying telling her the truth by telling himself ' _she deserves to know that I have been willingly putting her in danger for months_ '. He hadn't considered the danger he was putting Kate, Harvey and Selina in by bringing them into his crusade against Ra's but hearing their names slip off his tongue woke him up. He couldn't have them in his life, not with Ra's still lurking in the shadows.

' _Perhaps that's what he meant_.' Bruce thought optimistically.

She could tell by the way he said her name that he was serious. It made her uncomfortable so she shifted on her heels. "What?"

"I've been lying to you since we met." He began before letting the words pour out of his mouth but she listened, asked no questions and never once came out with a quip or excuse to leave like she typically would, had he not been trying to confess, he might have teased her about it.

Bruce told her everything from Ra's to his training to the reason for the patrols and when he was finally done, Selina remained silent. Then turned towards him with an expression that he couldn't read before pulling him into a hug, resting her forehead against. Her cold fingers glided across his skin, they tickled slightly from their difference in temperature that was still there from the open window and the feeling of complete comfort washed over Bruce, of not only acceptance and understanding but support. Her action spoke louder than anything she could have said to break the ice following his admission and the pounding feeling in his head, a side effect from the Lazurus Waters, dissipated.

In a brief break from the bitter cruelty of the world around them as the sun slowly rose on the horizon, light stretching outwards into the brightening sky with no sign of the chaos that the morning would bring, Bruce and Selina ignored the sound of his ringtone, from the bedside table, cutting through the silence and enjoyed the peace.


	24. Liar Liar

The relief was the first thing that he felt, watching the body bag get loaded up into the back of the unmarked, black SUV. A smile that threatened to force it's way out was only suppressed by the thought that it should have sickened him. The emotionless way that he watched his father die, writhing around on the couch in unimaginable pain while Julie screamed behind him as the chemicals, mixed with his father's blood, burned into her skin. The easy drive over to his father's apartment in the city under Jim Gordan's instruction. But any semblance of guilt for handing his father the glass or grief, he had to fake. He felt nothing.

The lies about his feelings came surprisingly easy to him, like he had described the ways he should have felt in his head thousands of times, the crocodile tears still stained his cheeks as he stared out of the window watching the world go by while the officer driving looked in his rearview mirror every now and again when he didn't think Havey was looking, feeling sorry for him. The officer couldn't have been five, maybe six years older than him, fresh out of the academy so dealing with grieving relative was so far out of his depth he wasn't sure what to even say. Harvey's attempt to assure him that he would be fine was futile, so wiping the dried tears from his cheeks, he told him that he could stay in the reception room by the front door so that he could be alone.

Sitting down in his father's office, the leather chair behind his desk he had never been able to sit in while he was alive. Sinking into the cool leather, Harvey felt more relaxed than he ever had, sat in his father office chair with his head tilted back. He was rarely allowed the enter this office, he could count on one hand the number of times that he had been in here since he had been born. Sneaking in here with Tommy as a kid after Bruce had been too scared to, after his mother and brothers deaths and once to hide from his father after a particularly heavy drinking session that was ruined by his existence.

The phone would be ringing off of the hook soon with condolence calls but the voice had stopped, in the back of his mind, he hadn't heard it since the night before last. He finally had the peace he craved and he wanted to, no, needed to savour it. That was why he had told the officer to let nobody in so when he heard his a familiar voice call his voice, he was surprised.

"Harvey..."

He looked up before answering.

"Bruce."

"I'm so sorry, Captain Gordan told me what happened."

It wasn't until he saw that same pity in Bruce eyes that had been there when each and every person had looked at him since this morning, that he felt anger grow in the pit of his stomach, the rage took over before he had even realised it was there. Not once had he ever pitied Bruce after his parent's death, envied every day, but never pitied. "Bullshit!"

Papers flew across the room as he slammed his hand down on the desk. It caught Bruce off guard but he didn't show it and attempted to calm him down. "Harvey you need to..."

"Need to what Bruce?" He over-exaggerated his name to make a point. This was how he was supposed to react, and he was going to play to it. Besides, the anger felt good. "You HATED my father,"

It wasn't a lie, but it was hard to hear. He knew that Harvey hated him speaking badly about his father. "I hated what he did to you, how he treated you but nobody deserves to die, especially like that."

"What about shot dead in an alleyway?"

"Don't..." Bruce felt his fingers curl into a fist.

"Don't what? Tell me, does it feel good, up on your high horse you look down at us from?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"The sins of the fathers are visited upon the children." He paused for a moment. "Or mothers in your case."

Bruce's eyes darted from each corner of the room, afraid of what he would do if his eyes settled on his friend. Not even the thought that this was just Harvey projecting his anger onto Bruce quenched the anger he felt. This wasn't him, this was his grief, something Bruce knew well. "They laugh at you, you know. My father told me all about her dirty little secrets, why they kept that creepy butler around."

It was apparent that the Lazurus Waters still hadn't left his system as his fingernails dug into his palms, beginning to draw blood. It wasn't that he believed him, he knew that Harvey didn't believe it, he was just trying to hurt him like the kids back in elementary school, it had been one of the reasons why he had convinced Alfred to have him homeschooled after his parents deaths, and if it had been a week ago he would have seen it, but the rage was almost blinding. "Harvey, I swear to god-"

A loud knock at the door interrupted Bruce. "Mr Dent, is everything alright in there?" The officer that drove Harvey over had been instructed to remain with him in a protective capacity. He opened the door and flashed between the two friends, though with their death glares you couldn't tell from looking at them. Seeing Bruce's clenched fists and Harvey's red face, the officer put two and two together. "Perhaps you should leave Mr Wayne."

Bruce could see he wasn't going to get through to his friend.

"I was just leaving." He didn't take his eyes off of Harvey until he left the room when his fists loosened and while he should have felt the blood begin to pool in his hands, all that remained was four small dabs of blood on each hand, no cuts or marks.

Harvey, on the other hand, felt his anger surge rather than simmer down when Bruce left, hearing his fathers edge in his voice as he spoke. "I thought I told you I wanted no visitors!"

The officer tried to explain his incompetent understanding of simple orders. "I'm sorry, sir, I thought that you could use a friend."

"Gee, thanks that has helped me so much!" Every word he spoke was like venom coming from his tongue.

"Again, so sorry, it won't happen again."

Harvey felt his lip curl up as the officer shut the door behind himself before relaxing back into his chair. He wasn't sure why Bruce hadn't just been honest, had he been, maybe he would have someone to talk to, to tell that he was glad too.

" _You do_." A scratchy voice beckoned. " _Me_..."

* * *

Bruce spent the rest of the day researching at Wayne Manor waiting for the sun to go down. Each time Alfred arrived with food he found the previous meal untouched, Bruce had let everything get on top of him so there was no time to eat, last night, this morning and Harvey. He wasn't used to feeling unprepared and with Maroni behind bars he was even more confused. Last night, he seemed like he thought he was going to get away, so why would he need to kill the DA, besides he didn't wake in his cell until after his death so the question of how he would have organised it arose.

How did he get someone in the mansion? Each theory led to another dead end, nothing made sense and if he didn't know any better he would have suspected the Ra's Al Ghul would have had something to do with it but after last night it was clear he wouldn't be playing games, if he wanted to hurt Bruce then Harvey would be dead, not his father. Fed up with finding nothing Bruce tried to call Selina at dusk, hoping that she would be up for a patrol, he needed to blow off some steam and if that involved beating up some petty thieves, Bruce wouldn't object to it, he'd sewn up and freshly cleaned his suit for just an occasion.

With no answer, he decided to drive over to her apartment, leaving his car behind the gate that read no entry, he put the key into one of the compartments on his belt and headed up the fire escape only to find her apartment looking empty. Brushing a layer of dirt from the window with his gloved hand, he peered in only for a reflection behind him to draw his attention. Looking up he caught a glimpse of the black leather as she lept from this building to the next. Selina.

Taking off towards the roof after her, he hoped that he would be able to keep up.

Getting into the warehouse was easy, getting the documents were even easier, she had been studying the plans for the place and their layout for the past twelve hours, but getting out was the difficult part. Trusting Mouse was the most important part, and she was fairly certain that she could do that. The storage room was on the second floor, with the exit to the ventilation shaft being right above the heavy metal door, facing out onto the steel walkway that left her exposed.

Dropping down, Selina pressed her ear to the door, just left of the lock and got to work. Three twists and a click and she was in. Softly the door clicked open just enough to allow her to squeeze through before she pulled it shut behind her carefully avoiding any loud noises.

"Nicely done." She heard Mouse's voice congratulate her in her ear. "Now they're in that safe."

"Piece a cake." Selina muttered and got to work. 21-72-34, the safe swung open revealing its contents, piles of papers, jewels and genuine golden coins like you would find in a treasure chest that Selina had no idea really existed. Pulling the shoulder bag around to her front, Selina began flicking through the pile of folders quickly, only taking the documents with labels that matched the list she had memorised.

"Got 'em." She whispered, softly pushing the safe shut.

"Give it a second, their almost at the mark." Mouse informed her.

Selina took a second to tighten the bag strap to prevent it sagging, it was heavier than she thought it was going to be so she needed to be sure that it wouldn't hinder her ability to getaway. "Now."

Slipping out of the door she pulled it closed softly, before pulling herself up onto the walkway safety barrier, which was just a line of metal piping between her and a ten-foot drop. The door handle was next, she used it to give herself a boost so she could grip onto the vent but as she put her weight on it she heard it strain and give way falling before bouncing a few times and rolling under the barrier while Selina struggled to get leverage, her claws screeching against the metal as her bag pulled her back, tumbling onto the grated flooring.

With a groan, she opened her eyes to realise that she was face to face with two assault rifles. "Selina, you alright?" She heard in her ear as the two men shouted at her in unison.

"Don't move!" The one on the left had a buzz cut, freshly shaved, looked like he'd just come out of the military while the one on the right was bloated with big round red cheeks and looked like he had been picked up off of the street and given a gun.

"Shit! Selina, I can't..." Mouse tried to explain that her hands were tied.

She put her hands up sarcastically by her face as she lay at their feet. "It's cool, you got me!"

"Yeah, we fucking did." The larger man said, kicking Selina in the stomach as the other spoke into his radio.

"Hey, Romerez get your ass over here."

Over the radio, Romerez's voice sounded distorted. "Why?"

"We caught-" Military man was interrupted and stared at his partner like he wanted to hurt him.

"Some bitch tryna steal from us."

"Shit! This shits ours if Maroni goes down, let me get- Ahh!" As his radio was cut off, his scream could be heard from the south of the building followed by a loud crash.

Both of the military man's hands were back on his rifle as his attention was solely back on Selina. "Who the helluv you got with you."

Another scream followed by another crash. "Doug, check in with the boys."

Doug spoke into the radio. "Anyone respond." Silence. "Cut the bullshit, what was that?" No response. Selina watched as the red colour drained away from his face as the fear sunk in.

"Bitch, you best start talking."

"Selina, you need to get out of there, it's so quick-" Mouse cut out in her ear as she tried to answer the men.

"I came alone."

The electrical hum of the pendant lights hanging above stopped as the power went out submerging them in darkness for a second before the emergency red lighting along the walls flickered into life. "Don't lie to me girl, I'll shoot you in the face."

Selina remained just as shocked as the two men stood over her. "This isn't me."

"Bullshit! Wez, just shoot her, give her friends something to be angry about."

When Wez did nothing, Doug raised his gun preemptively and was met with a hook wrapping around his wrist. With no time for any of the trio to react, Doug was torn from the walkway up into the darkness of the rafters, the only sound that could be heard was the zipping sound of the rope and Wez's heavy breathing.

"Doug!" Wez followed his partner's direction but couldn't see a thing, he knew from the army that firing into the dark was useless so he grabbed Selina by her arm and forced her to her feet. She stumbled forwards as the force of his shove knocked her mask down slightly.

"You know..." Selina began as they walked, the guard's boots making a loud clinking sound against the grating as they walked.

"Shut up." He muttered as he watched the dark corners of the ceiling adjacent to them.

Selina stifled a fake giggle to make Wez nervous as, without Mouse in her ear, she could hear properly. "What's funny?"

They were nearly at the stairs, home free and she was laughing. "If he was zipped away,"

"Yeah?"

"Why are there three sets of footsteps?" As Wez spun on his heels, he was met with his own gun colliding with his face. Disorientated, it only took a shove from Selina to knock him through the barrier so he was on the short fall to the ground. Once they heard a sickening thump, the last thing that Wez would be feeling for an hour, Selina turned to Bruce.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, ungratefully.

"I thought you could use some help." He retorted.

"I had it handled," She stopped mid-sentence. "Hold on, why were you following me?"

"I wasn't following you, you didn't answer your phone."

"I was busy." They had both taken to speaking in low tones as they argued in the middle of one of Maroni's best-protected warehouses.

"Clearly, you could have died."

"I had it under control." They both knew that she was lying, but she'd be damned if he thought she was going to admit needing his help.

"What were you risking your life for?" His words stung because she knew it was because she had made him care, after Pam she wasn't sure why she was risking it all again, he was reminding her why she shouldn't have gone to the Manor the night he left. She had regretted it immediately and then done it again when he returned. All of this had been a mistake.

"Nothing, just figured that he's going down so I should come and see what I could take." All she needed was him to go on some crusade as he assumed that Falcone coerced her into working for him.

"What, just some bullshit thief high?"

She turned away from him and started heading for the stairs as she worried about what she might say, hurt that after everything he still seemed to just see her as a pathetic little thief, but she still couldn't bring herself to cut ties and screw everything up with him. She was selfish. "I don't have to listen to you judging me."

"Why did you lie?"

She stopped, facing him side-on. "Lie? I never told you the truth."

"It's the same thing!"

"Just because I didn't open up! This is what this is about?" She laughed at him callously while he stood there awkwardly. "Thanks for the help Bruce, I'll see you around."

She started down the stairs and the lights flickered back on, replacing the red with dim white light, and looking over her shoulder she found Bruce gone, wincing as she felt the pang of guilt sting, she knew how much it had taken him to open up to her and she threw it back in his face. Shaking it off as she heard Mouse's voice calling her name in her ear again, Selina answered her. She was panicked. "Selina?"

"Yeah, I'm here."

After a sigh of relief she spoke so fast, Selina almost didn't understand her. "What the hell happened? How'd ya?"

"Nothing, the power went out and I got the jump on them."


End file.
